I'm still me...
by Wyvern's Elucidated Brethren
Summary: This fic centres around Draco, and how his life changes after he comes to term with his sexuality. D/H slash. **FINISHED!**
1. 1

A/N: Bellerophon wanted to do a collaboration with me and, since he can't be bothered to get an author account and I'm stuck for ideas for my second chapter of Wolfshead (people, please read and review, give me ideas!!!) here this is! Warning: This is mild slash, anyone offended by such material hit your back button now! All who stay to read, please r/r.  
  
Disclaimer: Not mine, or Bel's. JK Rowling owns everything you recognise.   
  
The face in the mirror stares back, just as confounded as I. Why? The question keeps running through my head. Why, why, why! I feel...I don't know what I feel. I really don't. It's all too confusing. Damn hormones! Damn teenage life! Damn it all. My mother's often said this, and this time I agree with her: why can't we be born at twenty. Why go through the torture of adolescence, with all it's confusing changes and moods and emotions. Why me? Just tell me that. Why me? Why can't I be normal? Why do I have to be like this? Why does it have to be bloody me! Me, a pure-blood wizard, coming from a wealthy, respected family, admired by my colleagues and my father's colleagues. I have everything anyone could wish for. So why me?  
  
I suppose I'd better say what it is that's so awful. I found ... someone ... attractive. And that particular someone is...a guy. We were sat in Potions, I caught a glimpse of him, and thought, 'wow, he's sexy'. I don't know where the thought came from. I don't know why I thought it. I just did. And I found myself dwelling on his beauty; those gorgeous, deep eyes, that slim, athletic body.  
  
And now I'm sat here, alone, confused, not knowing what to do and who to talk to. I can't talk to my friends, they're not even friends anyway, just mere acquaintances introduced to me by my father. They're mean-spirited, live only to make fun of those they feel to be inferior to them, or at least, inferior to me. I can't talk to them about the fact that I'm homosexual.   
  
Homosexual. The very word wants to make me shiver. Me, a homosexual. I'm gay? I can't be! I scream to myself. I just can't be, can't be gay! I'm a bloody Malfoy! I just *can't* be gay! Homosexuals...they're evil, aren't they? Immoral. Inhuman even. People to be feared. I know it sounds like I'm describing the Death Eaters, but this is what my father has been telling me. I don't know any different, I only know what I've been told. My father says homosexuals are barbarous, appalling, gruesome, beings in the guise of humans, that they are unnatural, hideous, and should be shot on sight. And   
I've grown up believing that. And now I am one.   
It's strange. I don't feel any different. Just the same as always. The same me. But part of me, a very large part of me, is disgusted with myself. I just want to crawl away and die, before anyone finds out. It's barbaric, I tell myself, it's gruesome, homosexuals are evil perverts and spread all sorts of vile diseases, and corruption, and they're inhuman, aren't they?   
  
Aren't they?   
  
I'm not. I'm still me.   
  
I'm not barbaric and gruesome and inhuman. Some people, like Weasley, would disagree with me there, but I'm not. I'm just me. The same old me I was yesterday.   
  
Only now I'm confused. And lonely. And....scared. I admit, I'm scared.   
Maybe I'm overreacting. It was just one little thought, that's it, I'm overreacting. I am Draco Malfoy, and I am not gay.   
  
With that thought, I am ready to face the world. I think.  
  
  
We have Potions first. That means I will see *him*. No, calm down, Draco, I am not gay, I do not fancy him. Think of Pansy. I'm betrothed to Pansy. The thing is, it might just be the thought of being married to...to *that*, but I don't find the idea of a woman, much less Pansy, appealing at all. I see *him* approaching the classroom. My heart gives a leap. No, no! Stop! I am not gay, I am not gay, I am not gay....repeating that to myself, I walk in, preparing myself for getting through the lesson.   
  
*************************  
  
This is crazy. Absolute madness. This has been going on for a month now and shows no sign of letting up. Every time I see *him*, I want him. I desire him. It's mad. I can't be gay, I'm only sixteen! So why do I want to be with him, to touch him, to kiss him?! Why? I can't face the thought of dinner in the Great Hall. I'm going outside. Crabbe and Goyle will be easy to shake off. Neither of them can move in any direction other than the towards the Great Hall with the thought of food to lead them. All they ever think about is their bellies. So I'll go outside. There's a nice spot by the lake where I sometimes come to sit and think, and sketch. I'll go there. I'll sketch. Art always takes my mind off things.   
  
I was so absorbed in my work that I didn't hear them approaching. I was drawing a picture of *him*. And the tears had started falling halfway through my drawing, smudging it. The last month finally caught up with me, the feelings of frustration and confusion and anger. And then I heard them approaching. Weasley and Granger and... *him*. No time to hide. So I just sat there, the tears still cascading down my face, my smudged drawing half finished. And they drew near, and Weasley, with all his usual charm, tact and grace, yelled   
"What the hell are you doing here, Malfoy!"   
  
I stared at them for a moment, unable to think of anything to say. My usual repertoire of witty insults had deserted me. And I was scared, scared of the effect Harry was having on me. Finally I managed a weak "Fuck off, Weasley." But he just stood staring at me, then grinned.   
  
"What's this? The great Draco Malfoy, crying? Actually showing some emotion other than cold-blooded arrogance?" I shrugged. "What's that you're drawing, anyway?"   
"None of your bloody business," I snapped, turning away and stalking off. I was shaking as I turned the corner. The feelings that had surged through me when *he* was there were frightening me. I can't be gay, I keep telling myself that. But it's getting a lot harder to convince myself. Especially when I have to see Harry every day, in Care of Magical Creatures and Potion. This is getting stupid. I need to talk to someone. I'll be the first to admit that I've changed; I've become more moody and introverted. The other Slytherins have noticed the change, and many of them are starting to avoid me. Even Crabbe and Goyle have started to leave me alone in the evenings. I can't tell them anything, I just can't. And I can't tell my dad, that would be like introducing yourself to Hitler and saying "Hello, I'm a Jew." But I need to talk to someone, I'm going crazy.   
  
Snape. I'm his favourite student, he'll listen to   
me, he'll understand. I'll go and see him tonight, after dinner.   
  
A/N: (by Bel) : So, what does Snapey say? Will Dra accept his situation? And what ice cream shall I treat myself to??? Please r/r and tell us what you thought. We love you. 


	2. 2

A/N: (by Bel) Here it is, the eagerly anticipated Chapter 2! Yaay! :) In which Draco has his conversation with Snape....enjoy! And, sorry it took so long, the delay was due to the fact that we've been busy with our other slashfics, Wyv's A-level exams, and the fact that the computer has only just decided to let us upload chapters!   
  
Disclaimer: Not ours. We own nothing. Wish we did! The Slytherin boys mentioned here are actually players from the AFC Bournemouth footy team. Don't worry, Mr O'Driscoll, we'll have em back nice and fit by the start of the season!  
  
It's freezing in these dungeons. It should be illegal to be this cold. The door creaked open and I stepped inside. Snape smiled when he saw me.   
"Mr Malfoy," he said. "What can I do for you? Do you need any help with..."  
"No," I interrupted. I just needed to talk to someone, and I thought you would listen." Snape nodded sympathetically. I took a deep breath, and began.   
  
"Well, you see..." I hesitated. "It's rather difficult. Um...just lately, I've been having feelings, strange feelings about someone."   
"Pleasantly warm, happy feelings? Butterflies in your stomach? Feeling like you're floating on air?" I nodded. "It's perfectly obvious, Mr. Malfoy. You're in love." I said nothing, just kept on staring at the floor. "So, who's the lucky girl?" This was the part I'd been dreading. My hands were shaking.   
  
"it...it isn't a girl. That's what I wanted to talk to you about. It's a boy. And I'm scared."   
Snape said nothing. The silence flowing around us was disconcerting. I forced myself to look up at Snape.   
  
He had gone deathly pale and was just staring at me. It was probably the most terrifying thing I've seen this year. His fists were clenched tightly, his knuckles turning white with the pressure.   
  
"Sir?"   
"I think you should go." I was stunned. What was wrong with Snape? Why was he looking at me like that? It looks...it almost looks as if he's scared of me. Great! Is there no-one I can talk to about this? I tried pressing him one more time.  
"Professor, I..." "I said go!" Snape snapped, suddenly looking fierce. I took the hint and went.  
  
I ran from the dungeons, tears streaming down my face. It was difficult enough trying to cope with all these weird emotions rushing through me without encountering hostility wherever I went. Just my luck! I was starting to feel shame. Ashamed of feeling for this way. It somehow feels natural to me...but I know it's not. It can't be. Not looking where I was going, I bumped into someone, knocking them over.   
  
"Watch where you're going, Malfoy!" spat the person. I stopped sobbing for a moment. It was him! Harry! I stared at him for a second, then looked away. I didn't think I could face him right now. Or ever. I heard him get up and walk away, then howled in sheer frustration. I didn't hear him come back.  
  
"Draco?" I jumped at the sound of his voice. "What's wrong?" I tried to sneer, but somehow, sneering doesn't quite work with tears running down your face. I said nothing, just looked away. I couldn't say anything, I wasn't ready for a verbal battering, which is what I would surely get from Mr Perfect Gryffindor.  
  
Then I felt his arms circling around me, drawing me into a hug. I clung to him for a couple of minutes until the tears had stopped. I pulled away from his embrace reluctantly. I quite enjoyed the feeling of being in his arms....no! stop it! Stop...oh hell!  
  
"Thank you," I murmured. He smiled at me, and helped me up.   
"No worries. So, what's wrong?" I just shook my head. "And don't tell me it's nothing. It must be something bad in order to make Ice Queen Draco Malfoy howl."   
"I....I can't tell you. You wouldn't understand."   
"Try me."  
  
One look into those green eyes told me that I could tell him. And I must admit, I had to admire the way he was making the effort to talk to me, even though we haven't ever exactly seen eye to eye. Anyway, I told him everything. Well, not everything, I still had enough pride and self control left to conceal the fact that it was him I fancied. The silence that followed my outburst was making me feel uncomfortable again, and I risked a look at Harry, expecting to see horror and revulsion twisting his features. Instead, he was looking at me with sympathy and understanding.   
  
"Sorry," I mumbled, still feeling extremely uneasy.   
"Don't apologise, I know just what it feels like."   
"What?" I was stunned. I was not expecting that! "You mean you're...?"   
"Gay. Yes." he finished. "I went through it all last year. It wasn't easy, but I had Dumbledore to talk to, and Ron and Hermione. Probably a lot more support than you've had." I nodded. Everyone I knew seemed to have a revulsion towards homosexuals.   
"Who did you realise you fancied, then?" I asked. He went bright red at these words. "Weasley?"   
"No, erm, Seamus Finnigan," he replied, a shade too quickly. "You?"   
"Wade Elliott," I lied. "The one who always sits opposite Pansy Parkinson in Potions. He nodded. I lost my nervousness as we talked for what must have been hours. And I found my admiration for him growing. His bravery and easy manner were starting to rub off on me, and I started feeling a lot better. Then we said goodbye. I walked back to the Slytherin common room feeling a lot happier than I had in ages. So happy, in fact, that I had lost the shame I was feeling after coming out of Snape's office and wanted to dance along the corridors singing "I am gay! And proud of it!"  
  
That good mood evaporated when I entered the Slytherin common room. For a start, Pansy Parkinson latched herself on to me, and I could hear Crabbe and Goyle sniggering about the sweets they'd just nicked off a Hufflepuff first year. I settled down into an armchair by the fire, and was immediately surrounded by Pansy and her girlie gang. They were giggling about something. Wade Elliott also joined us.   
"What's the matter now?" I sighed.   
"Karl Broadhurst's just announced that he's gay!" Pansy shrieked. "Can you believe it! I'd die if it was one of my friends!"   
"Bloody poof," grunted Goyle in my other ear. "If he tries it on with me I'll smack him one." I sniggered; the only thing likely to try it on with Goyle was a dead pigeon.   
"I always liked Karl," whispered one of the girls to Pansy. "Now I don't want to even look at him."   
  
"There's nothing wrong with being gay!" I yelled, without thinking. Their pathetic, bigoted comments were really getting to me. Some of the girls started giggling again. They always do. It should be made illegal. The rest just stared at me, and I started to panic. I could hear the rumbling that meant Crabbe was trying to string a relatively coherent sentence together.  
"You're not...you know...are you?" he asked.   
"Of course I bloody am!" I snapped, in what I hoped was a sarcastic tone, yanking my arm away from Pansy's death grip.   
"What's the matter with you, Draco?" demanded Wade. "You've been all tetchy lately."   
"Just tired, I guess," I lied. "I haven't been sleeping well lately." This was partly true; I had been losing some sleep over concerns about my sexuality, which was even harder to come to terms with when I was encountering homophobic reactions at every opportunity.  
"Poor Drakie, what's wrong?" simpered Pansy, snuggling up to me.   
"None of your fucking business!" I snarled, jumping up, dumping Pansy unceremoniously on the floor. She stared at me for a minute, hurt. I swept across the common room and ran up to my dormitory, jumping on my bed and burying my face in the pillows.   
  
A few moments later, Wade came in.   
"What is wrong with you!" he shouted. "You had no right to treat Pansy like that, she loves you, she deserves better treatment from her fiancee!" I shuddered at those words. We'd been betrothed ever since our birth.   
"She loves me or my money?" I snapped back. Wade didn't have an answer to that.   
"Come on, man, what's wrong? We're friends, aren't we? You can tell me."   
"I can't."   
"Why not?"   
"You wouldn't understand. None of you would understand."   
  
  
  



	3. 3

  
A/N: Thank you all who reviewed! Comments and suggestions are greatly appreciated.   
Bel: The roll of honour, and it's a large one....  
Alan: Thank you to: Tani, SaneLunatic, TicTac, Mystery Girl, Styx, Just Silver, Sarah-chan, Chain, ~*Fluff*~, Tom Riddilpley, Lindsay Beth, Raggona, WeezlPete, Sharon M, C.A., potionsmaster, Liz, threelightsgirl, Di-chan, lynn, Banance, Damien Lukas Cardoza, Angel, Shaded Mazoku, Ruka-chan, mandy, misty, Goddess Shinigami, purpleatheist, Cat Samwise, Rebecca the Great, Brightstar, Raven Mars and Allie Potter. Phew! So many people love us, thank you!  
Wyv: What a beauty!   
Bel: Oh, and by the way, I treated myself to Triple Choc Mint ice cream. :)  
  
Chapter 3.  
  
  
I woke up the next morning and experienced that one moment of pure bliss before the events of yesterday came crashing down on me like a thousand bricks. The big, concrete slab bricks at that.   
  
I groaned and dragged myself out of bed. Today was one of those days when I really wished I hadn't been sorted into Slytherin. I had to go and face them all and it was very likely that they wouldn't be happy with me, the way I'd just run out on them last night. At least they're not that intelligent, or I'd have a very difficult time ahead of me.   
  
I smiled at them and allowed Pansy to drape herself over me at breakfast. I allowed myself frequent brief glances at the Gryffindor table, watching Harry. Weasley wasn't looking to happy, and from the glares he was sending my way I guessed that Harry had told him about our conversation. Once I caught Harry's eye and smiled at him.   
  
"Why were you smiling at Potter?" demanded Pansy sharply. I shot her a disdainful look.   
"That, my dear, was my calculating, planning-on-causing-trouble-smile," I drawled, smiling sweetly at her. That seemed to gratify her, but she kept a sharp eye on me for the rest of breakfast, and I forced myself to concentrate on my food instead of Harry.  
  
"What was wrong with you last night anyway?" asked Wade. I groaned. I thought I'd made it clear to him last night that I didn't want to discuss it.   
"Nothing, really," I said. "I've just been feeling a bit ill lately."   
"Poor Dracie! You should go to the hospital wing," cooed Pansy, hugging me. Eurgh. I need a shower now.   
"It's nothing, really. I'll be all right later," I assured her.   
"You're so brave!" Pansy crooned, fluttering her eyelashes at me. I felt sick and excused myself from the table, telling Crabbe and Goyle I'd meet them in class.  
  
The rest of the day passed without incident, and the time seemed to fly past, propelling us forward to the last lesson of the day: double Potions. I groaned inwardly as I descended the steps with Crabbe and Goyle.   
  
"Are you all right?" asked Wade, as we stood waiting outside the door. "You look a bit ill."   
"I'm fine," I lied. I did feel a bit nauseous, especially as I didn't know how Snape would react. Just then, Harry and his gang turned up and I started feeling even more nervous. I took a deep breath and steeled myself as we all walked in the door, forcing myself to look at where I was going, and not at either Snape or Harry.  
  
I was partnered with Wade, who was treating me like I was a bomb that was about to go off. And Snape kept skirting around me, like I was contagious or something. He also kept giving me these really strange looks. Sometimes they seemed to be the sort of sneer he usually gave Harry, but most of the time it was more like he was terrified of me. Really great. My life is just amazing at the moment.   
  
The only thing that made me smile today was right near the end of the lesson, when the potion that Harry and Longbottom were working on exploded, showering the class in orange gloop.   
"Longbottom! Potter! You will stay behind and clear that up! Class dismissed." ordered Snape. He was furious. I felt sorry for Harry, having to stay behind with that freak, and hastily scribbled a note to him, asking him to meet me by the lake at six.   
"Well, well, the great Harry Potter can't even make a simple Soothing Potion," I sneered as I approached him with Crabbe and Goyle. He glared at me, and I dropped the note on his lap as we went past. I shouldn't have said that, it felt awful, but I had standards to maintain. I couldn't have any of the Slytherins catching on.   
  
*  
  
Harry was late meeting me, and he still had bits of orange goo stuck in his hair. He looked adorable.   
"Sorry for sneering at you, earlier," I said. "I have, you know..."   
"Difficult associates, I know," he grinned at me. We sat down, leaning against a tree. For a moment we sat in silence, and I was revelling in the fact that Harry was so close to me. Wait. These feelings are getting the better of me. Have to fight them.   
  
"You didn't look too happy at breakfast," Harry said at last. "What was the matter?"   
"Oh, you know, typical Slytherin attitudes. It's really pissing me off," I replied. "I noticed Weasley...erm, Ron, wasn't looking too happy either. I guess you told him about our conversation." Harry nodded.   
"He wasn't too happy at first, but he conceded that you were a really screwed up bloke and would probably be okay if you weren't a Slytherin and a Malfoy," he replied. "He said that I should watch out, if we get too close he's having me shipped off to St Mungo's." I laughed. Typical Weasley.   
  
"So, how did you come to terms with it all?" I asked suddenly. He just looked at me for a moment. "Sorry just to spring it up like that, but I have to know, I can't go on feeling confused and worthless."   
"For a start, stop feeling worthless," he replied. "You have to realise that, no matter what anyone says, being gay is not unnatural or perverted or anything like that. And it's just a part of who you are, you don't just change overnight just because you've realised you're gay."   
  
Harry assured me that once I'd got over the denial, it would get a lot easier, and it would also get easier if I had friends who knew what I was going through. I was delighted when he suggested we bury the hatchet, preferably in Snape's back. I agreed, and we continued talking until it got too dark to see anymore. I was feeling a lot happier about myself when we'd finished talking, and I felt that I was getting over the denial stage. It took all of my self-control not to kiss him when we said goodbye. He's too cute, that boy.   
  
I stepped into the common room entrance and was nearly brained by a flying book. I glared at the person who'd hurled the book at me. Pansy. She was standing on the opposite side of the room, and she looked bloody furious. Great. She's probably got PMT.   
"You bastard!" she yelled, throwing another book at me. Yep. Definitely PMT.   
"What's wrong, love?" I asked, going over to her.   
"Don't come near me, you queer!" I stopped dead in my tracks as the common room fell silent. How the hell did she know?   
  
"What are you talking about, Pansy?" demanded Wade.   
"Yeah, I'd quite like to know that myself," I said, glaring at her. Pansy looked around until she was sure she had the attention of everyone in the room, then yelled:  
"Draco's gay, and he's in love with Potter!" 


	4. 4

  
Bel: Thanks, you wonderful, wonderful lot for your reviews!   
Wyv: That's: lore, Julianna Edwards, Cat Samwise, MoonShadow, Brightstar, Banance, Lelio, and Just Silver. We are not worthy of your praise!   
Bel: Yes we are, shut up and write! :) It's pretty short, this chapter, but that just means the next part will be up even sooner!  
  
Chapter 4  
  
I froze temporarily at hearing those words. The silence in the common room was deafening. Pansy was looking at me like...well, if looks could kill, I'd be a mound of dust on the floor. I calmed myself, gave her an icy glare and decided to resort to the Ancient Art of Malfoy Trouble Avoiding Tactic- Lie.   
  
"Pansy, my dear," I said very clearly so everyone could hear me, "if you are going to make up wild accusations about me at least make me have a false relationship with someone more believable than Potter. Credit me with some taste, darling."   
  
"Oh, yeah?" she sneered at me. "Then why do you keep looking at him?"   
"Plotting," I replied quickly.   
"Why were you with him earlier? I saw you talking to him by the lake!" Oh, so she's been spying on me. Bloody women. Is it any wonder I don't like them when I have to put up with this?   
"We ran into each other and were trading insults!" I snapped. Far from being put out, Pansy looked rather pleased, as if she was just about to play her trump card.   
"Oh, really, Malfoy?" she asked.   
"Really, Parkinson," I sighed. I glanced around for Wade. He had disappeared. Great. Usually whenever me and Pansy have a fight he's the one who drags her away from me. I think he likes her. Poor, demented fool. Pansy was smiling at me. Her little evil smile that she does when she knows the person she's talking to is going to get into a lot of trouble. Oh, hell.  
  
"Well, if you don't fancy Potter, why does it say so in your diary?" She pulled my diary out of her pocket and waved it in my face. I snatched for it, but she kept it out of my reach.   
"What the hell are you doing with my diary, Parkinson?" I demanded.   
"I was looking for you earlier in your dorm, and I found this on your bedside table."   
"You have no right to go through my things."   
"Draco, I'm your fiancee!"   
"That still gives you no bloody right! A man's allowed to have some privacy, isn't he? And how did you break the charm on it anyway?"   
"Honestly, Draco, a three-year-old could have broken that charm. Listen to this, everyone!" I cringed as she read out my latest entry, detailing what Harry had told me, and putting unnecessary emphasis on the phrase "I think I fancy him" at the end.  
  
The silence was now extremely disconcerting. I could feel disapproval pouring in at me from all sides, and the space around me was widening as the less tactful of the Slytherins edged away from me. I glared at everyone who looked at me. Pansy was looking extremely smug, and I longed to hit her.   
  
Someone tapped me on the shoulder, and I spun around to find myself looking into Wade's eyes. There was something in them I'd never seen before. Deep, utter hatred.   
"Draco," he growled, then, instead of talking, hit me.   
  
I stared at him, shocked, for a moment, then jumped back as he swung for me again. I retaliated, hitting him as hard as I could. The self-defence lessons my father grudgingly gave me all went out of the window. I was hitting to hurt.   
  
Wade half stunned me with a blow to the side of the head and I stumbled. I recovered before he could strike again and tripped him. As he went down I punched him in the face again and heard a satisfying crack as his nose broke. I managed to get him into a headlock.   
  
"What the fuck was that for?" I demanded as he struggled to get free. "I haven't changed, you know. Just because I think I have feelings for a boy doesn't mean I've changed. I mean, I don't even know if I do have feelings for him!" I threw Wade to the ground. "For god's sake, what gives you the right to judge me in this way? I'm still me! Draco Malfoy!"   
  
"You're a pervert!" yelled Wade, rising. I punched him hard in the stomach and he fell back, winded.   
"I'm not a pervert!" I screamed at him. "What the hell has brought this on, Wade? I thought we were friends!"   
"You're no friend of mine, you sick bastard!" he growled.   
"Fine. And you wondered why I didn't tell you why I was so moody the other day. Well, now you know." I turned to walk out of the common room and glimpsed Karl Broadhurst giving me an approving nod. I resolved to go and talk to him later.   
  
Pansy reached the portrait hole before me.   
"I'm sure your father would love to know about this," she whispered, as she brushed past me. I hurried after her.   
"Pansy, no, don't you dare!" I yelled after her. She was already halfway up the steps, and turned and gave me her sweetest (most loathsome) smile.   
  
"Or you'll what?" she asked. I noticed that she had a piece of parchment in her hand, and went to grab it off her.   
"Pansy, give me the letter," I demanded.   
"No," she replied, turning back up the stairs. I grabbed her wrist.   
"Pansy, don't tell my father, he'll kill me," I pleaded. I couldn't believe I was doing that, pleading to Pansy. Ugh, she'll hold that against me for the rest of my life.   
"It's the best thing that could happen to disgusting scum like you," she snapped.   
  
I panicked and grabbed the parchment.   
"Get off, that's mine!" Pansy squealed.   
"Give it to me!" I demanded. We began to struggle and fight for the parchment. It was not a very clever thing to do on the stairs. As Pansy pushed me I lost my footing and fell. The last thing I heard before my head cracked against the stone and darkness swamped me was her screaming.  



	5. 5

  
Wyv: Yaaaay! We have over 50 reviews for this story! So many people love us, and we love you guys! Big hug for all! *huuug*  
Bel: Our thanks to our reviewers for Chapter 4: maidmarian62, Padfootsgirl, Lelio, Allie Potter, Just Silver (hm...killing Pansy does sound very attractive :) ), Cat Samwise (do you seriously think we'd kill off our star?? Well, maybe maim him a little bit), FringeElement and Eternal Haven.   
Wyv and Bel ::do the Wayne's World thingy:: We're not worthy! We're not worthy! lol!  
  
Chapter 5!  
  
  
I woke up after gods know how long and my head ached like hell. I could hear people talking, and didn't want to open my eyes in case one of them was my father.   
  
"He was very lucky, if he'd struck the stone an inch the other way..."   
"I'll prepare the potion for him. I'll be back in an hour."   
"So he'll be ok?"   
  
Having deduced from the lack of shouting going on that my father wasn't there, I decided to open my eyes, and immediately wished I hadn't. I was so dizzy, it felt like I was falling, even though I knew that I was lying flat on the bed. I gripped the sides of the bed in an effort to stop the spinning.   
  
"Oh, you're awake!" Madam Pomfrey leaned over me. "How do you feel?"   
"Ill," I mumbled. She took my temperature.   
"What happened, anyway? I suppose you were fighting again..."   
"No, not really...ahh, help!" I moaned, squeezing my eyes shut, attempting to stop the latest bout of dizziness. I then made the mistake of lurching upright, like some bad re-enactment of Frankenstein coming to life.  
"My father!"   
"Doesn't know a thing. We prevented Miss Parkinson from sending the letter. She was too shocked to do anything anyway. She thought she'd killed you."   
"Chance would be a fine thing," I muttered, turning slowly onto my side.  
"You don't look good. Shall I tell your visitor to go away?" asked Madam Pomfrey.   
"Visitor?" Madam Pomfrey moved back and I could just make out Harry standing at the foot of the bed. He smiled at me.   
  
"You okay?"   
"Yeah," I lied. It must have been obvious that I wasn't, but I wasn't going to admit it. Not to him.  
"I won't stay long, have to get to Divination." I nodded.  
"Where are the other two?"   
"Busy arguing, I don't know what about this time, probably something incredibly important like Crookshanks has moulted and the fur got up Ron's nose." I chuckled, and he grinned at me.  
  
"So, what can I do you for?"   
" I heard about the fight with the Slytherins, and just wanted to see how you were." I groaned. So he heard. He must know now that it's him I...like.   
"You know?" I moaned.   
"Yeah, the Slytherins were ranting about it at breakfast. They wouldn't say who it was, you know, that you like." I gave him a searching look, well, I would have done if I could focus properly. I couldn't tell whether he was lying or not, saving me the embarrassment.   
  
"They didn't say, eh?"   
"Nah, they're being pretty secretive. But they're being even more horrible to the Gryffindors than usual." He was grinning now. I decided to remain silent. "So, it's a Gryffindor, then." I glared at him. "Who is it? Seamus? Dean? Ron? Or is it a fifth year?"   
"Don't pretend you don't know," I snapped. He smiled.   
"I really don't know. So, come on, tell me, who is it?"   
"I feel sick," I replied, grabbing the bowl from the table beside me and retching into it. I didn't notice Harry leave.   
  
After I had drunk a potion that Snape gave me and Madam Pomfrey kept me in overnight for observation, I was allowed back to classes, despite my feeble protestations that I was still too ill. I admit that they were false, but I would do anything to avoid seeing the Slytherins again so soon.  
  
I took a deep breath before entering the common room. As I strode in all conversation ceased and I could feel everyone's eyes on me as I sat down in my usual place by the fire. I ignored them.   
  
Someone tipped my chair back and I found myself looking in Wade's bright blue eyes.   
"That seat's taken," he growled.   
"No-one was sitting here," I muttered.   
"So? People of your persuasion aren't allowed to sit there. We might catch something."   
"Oh, so I see I didn't manage to knock some sense into you. Care for another beating?" Wade snorted and threw the chair forwards so fast that I was nearly catapulted off.   
"Go on, go and sit in Queer Corner," he said, gesturing to where Karl Broadhurst was sitting. "We don't want your sort here."   
  
"What is wrong with you, Wade?" I snapped. "I haven't become some demon overnight, you know. Why do you hate me so much now? I haven't changed! Not one bit! So I think I fancy a guy. Big fucking deal!"   
"But you have changed, Draco. You've become a poof. And I'll tell you why I hate you. Because it's disgusting. It's abnormal. It's inhuman."   
"Fine!" I yelled. "Feel like that. You know, I don't care what you think anymore. I don't care what any of you think. I'm gay. And I'm proud of it! Me, Draco Malfoy, proud to be gay! Now excuse me, I'm going to go somewhere where I'll be accepted!"   
"There's no such place!" yelled Wade after me as I strode out of the portrait hole and went in search of Harry.  
  
I found the "Dream Team" walking towards the Great Hall on their way to breakfast. Harry smiled as he saw me.   
"Hey, how's things?" he greeted.   
"Snape cured my concussion with a potion. He's been acting really strangely around me lately. Didn't even give me the potion, gave it to Madam Pomfrey and practically ran out of the room." Harry shrugged.   
"He's a strange man. Have you seen the Slytherins yet?"   
"Yeah. Bunch of wankers. Until Pansy told them about me being gay, they were fine with me. Now Wade, one of my only real friends, hates me with a vengeance."  
"Some people are just narrow-minded like that, though," said Gra...Hermione. "Just ignore them." I smiled at her.   
"I'll try, but it's hard to ignore Wade when he leans right in close enough to poke your eye out with his nose."  
  
Ron was just staring at me, as though unsure of what to make of me. I suppose I had made fun of him last time I spoke to him, and he looked like he was struggling to come to terms with me being nice to them. Don't blame him, really. I wouldn't trust me. I suppose Harry had told him to at least tolerate me.  
  
"What are you gonna do about breakfast?" asked Harry.   
"Dunno, just thought about getting some food from the kitchens and sitting outside," I replied.   
"How about you... sit... with us?" Ron blurted out. It must have taken a lot of courage for him to say that, and I warmed to him. I smiled again.   
"Yeah, I might just do that. Thanks, Ron." I engaged him in a conversation about Quidditch as we made our way to the Great Hall for breakfast.   
  
The look on Ron's face was comical as we talked. It was a sort of mixture of amusement, fear and anxiety. But, as we talked, a feeling almost unknown to me made itself known. I began to feel...accepted. For the first time in my life, people were accepting me, warts and all. And those people were the three people I had ridiculed for most of my time at Hogwarts. The irony of it almost made me laugh out loud, and I ignored the collective gasp that went up from around the school as I took a seat at the Gryffindor table.  
  



	6. 6

  
Wyv: Thankies to: Julianna Edwards, Lelio, Cat Samwise, Brightstar and Just Silver. We can never tire of telling you guys how much we love you!   
Bel: While we're here....anyone have any ideas what devilishly amusing situation we can get Harry into for the sequel to 'Worth the Wait'? Cos we've already written Draco's woke-up-from-the-stag-party-to-find-himself-in-a-weird-situation thing, but we can't think of anything for Harry. Help much obliged. We need to write this fic people! Heeeeeelp!   
Wyv: Excuse my friend, the question has literally been driving him insane. But we are really stuck ::pleading puppy-dog eyes::  
Anyway, on with the story!   
  
Chapter 6!!!  
  
  
The Gryffindors shrank away from me as I sat down. I smiled at them.   
"What the hell is he doing here?" demanded Seamus Finnigan.   
"It's ok, Seamus, he's a friend now," assured Harry. Neville Longbottom, who was sitting opposite me, gave a frightened little squeak as I smiled at him.   
"Don't worry, Neville," I said. "I'm not gonna hex you or anything." Dean Thomas snorted something that sounded like 'for once'. I ignored him.   
"Harry said Mal..Draco's been having problems with the other Slytherins," said Ron. "So he's gonna sit here until it all blows over."   
"That's not very likely to happen, at the moment," I sighed, glancing over at my ex-best friend. Harry nudged me.   
"Cheer up, Draco. It's Saturday. We can avoid them all day in Hogsmeade."   
"Yeah," I murmured, still keeping an eye on Wade. He was flirting with Pansy. Well, he's welcome to her. Evil bitch. I noticed Harry and Ron exchange Looks. You know, those meaningful sort of looks that characters give each other in crappy Muggle soap operas. Those kind. The other Gryffindors were ignoring me, which suited me fine.   
  
Well, they were ignoring me up until the point where a load of cornflakes and milk deposited themselves in my lap, propelled there with the help of Finnigan's spoon. I glared at him. He was smirking in a self-satisfied kind of way. I retaliated by throwing some of my egg at him. It hit him on the side of the face. He stopped smirking then and glared at me. I grinned and gave him a cheeky wave. He threw a fried egg, stolen from Dean Thomas' plate, at me.  
  
Soon there was food flying in every direction on the Gryffindor table, and it wasn't long before the rest of the school joined in. Harry looked like he was enjoying himself, covered in a bit of every type of food on the table. Hermione started off looking shocked and appalled, and only joined in when a Hufflepuff boy dumped a cup of milk over her head.   
  
I had wandered over to the Slytherin table in the excitement. I was taking great pleasure in throwing all kinds of food at Wade's face, and I'm sure he was equally delighted in upturning an entire jug of pumpkin juice all over my head.   
  
Harry and Ron joined me moments later, grinning. We stood side-by-side, throwing as much food as we could lay our hands on at Pansy and Wade, Ron yelling such memorable battle cries at "Heads up, porridge bomb!"  
  
We sat in the Three Broomsticks later that day enjoying a Butterbeer and laughing about the food fight. I felt that I could really enjoy being friends with this lot. Well, at least up until the point where Harry turned to me, saying "You still haven't told me which Gryffindor you fancy," and Hermione and Ron leaned in with expectant grins on their faces. I went bright red and mumbled something.   
"What was that? We didn't hear," demanded Hermione.   
"You weren't supposed to!" I retorted, and was saved from answering further as Karl Broadhurst came over. I'd never really spoken to him before, he was always the quiet kid in the corner in our year, but right now it was nice to see a friendly face from my House.   
  
"Can I speak to you?" he asked. I nodded. "That was a brave thing you did the other day," he continued. "You know, standing up to your friends like that. I wish I had that courage. I just hid behind Fletch when I came out." I winced at the memory of the fights and resulting concussion.   
"Yeah, well, I had to. You know what Wade's like, he's a berserker. I had to hit back or I'd be six feet under by now. He would have killed me if he could."   
"I knew him when we were at primary school. Twisted bastard."   
"Sounds about right," I agreed. "But then, we're all twisted bastards really, aren't we. It just depends on your view of 'twisted'."  
"Yep, and his view of twisted, is, well,"   
"Twisted," I finished for him. Karl looked up as his seventh-year boyfriend, something Fletcher, came over.   
"We're off to the sweet shop, are you coming?" he asked. Karl grinned.   
"Yeah. You need anything, Draco, come to me and Fletch, we'll look after you." He got up, kissed Fletch, wrapped his arms around him and went out. I watched them go, jealous of the easy time they appear to have had. Well, they would have. Fletch is well over six foot, and built like a brick shithouse. I wished fervently that they could be me and Harry. I sighed.  
  
"You still haven't answered the question, Malfoy," reminded Harry.   
"Yeah, and you're still being a nosey bugger, Potter," I said. "Drop the act, it's not funny anymore. You so obviously know." Harry's face was the picture of innocence.   
"I seriously do not know, Draco," he replied.  
"Then you're thicker than I thought," I replied. I refused to say any more on the subject, and the talk reverted to Quidditch.  
  
We lingered in the grounds before heading back to our common rooms when we got back to school. The sun was setting, and the overall picture by the lake was absolutely stunning. I wished I had my sketchbook.   
  
"Draco," murmured Harry, as we sat by a tree.   
"You're going to try and get me to tell you who I like, aren't you?" I replied.   
"Nah, I've given up trying to make you tell me that you like me," he grinned. I turned and faced him, mouth hanging open. Ron giggled.   
"Draco's doing a really good impression of a goldfish..." he began. Harry silenced him with a wave of his hand.   
"When did you work it out?" I asked.   
"I overheard Pansy talking, well, screeching, to Wade earlier. And there was the fact that you always avoid looking at me when I ask you, as well as turning a rather attractive shade of pink. And you called me dumb. And..." really that obvious, why didn't you say anything sooner?"   
"Well, we weren't really friends sooner, were we."   
"I guess not," I admitted.   
"So, are you gonna kiss me or do we have to talk some more first?"   
  
I said nothing, just leaned in closer to Harry and kissed him. It felt...it felt right. In that moment, everything negative that had ever been said to me about my sexuality washed away. I didn't care what anyone thought of me anymore. I finally had my Harry.   
  
That perfect moment was rudely interrupted when someone yanked my head away from Harry's. Hard. That someone hauled me up onto my feet. Oh, what a surprise. It was Wade.   
  
"So this is what the dirty little gay boys have been up to," he sneered. "Filthy as each other, perverting the environment with their obscene little games. You disgusting, filthy little..." Wade broke off as someone grabbed him by the collar and slammed him against the tree. He struggled as he looked up at six foot six of angry Weasley.   



	7. 7

  
Wyv: I know, I know, we said we'd take a break from this series for a while to concentrate on our other fics....but Lan and Bel won't let me!   
Bel: Well, we know you're concentrating on your non-slash fics at the moment, but this is much more fun!   
Lan: Besides, you've posted 2 chapters to Dice and one to Dace, as well as Wedding Bells, so be happy!   
Bel: And I think the fans of this fic are desperate to know what happens next.   
Wyv: Inspiration comes in many forms...but today Inspiration has appeared in the form of Bel and his boyfriend Alan. Men are so much trouble. Why is it me doing all the work, anyway?  
Bel: We help!  
Wyv: I don't really think that ogling Tim Henman during Wimbledon while eating *my* strawberries - yes, I *saw* you nick some, Bel - counts as 'help', do you??  
Lan: Hey, we come up with some of the ideas :) Anyway, you're the best typer!   
Wyv: Awww, flattery will get you everywhere. Anyways, on with the story, Lan, come and do the thankyous!   
Lan: Thank you to all who reviewed chapter 6. These wonderful people are: Banance, maidmarian62, MoonShadow, Cat Samwise, Allie Potter, trina, Lelio, Princess Sari, Gwydion, Brightstar (this is 6th Year, so he's 16, 6 ft 6 is highly feasible. My mate's bro is 14 and 6 ft 5.) and Stalker of the Bournemouth Players.   
Bel: We'd just like to reassure our friend Stalker..., who grumbled about us making Wade Elliott a bastard. We are using the names and looks of the AFC Bournemouth players only. The actual players are wonderful people, as we all know and drool over constantly. Calm down, luv, it's fiction, and we did warn you :)  
  
Anyway, that's a long a/n, on with the story!   
  
Chapter 7!   
  
  
Wade struggled to free himself but Ron's grip was too strong and he settled for glaring balefully at him instead.   
"Unhand me, Weasley!" Wade ordered. Ron slammed him against the tree even harder than before.   
"No-one insults my friends and gets away with it," he growled menacingly, his face merely inches from Wade's. "I have known Harry for six years, and he is not filthy and disgusting. You are. Now apologise!"   
"I will not!" said Wade haughtily. "They deserve everything they get, perverts!"  
  
Ron didn't answer for a minute. Shaking with anger, he let Wade down. Wade smoothed off his robes and stepped forwards...right into Ron's fist. Wade fell back and staggered back up, his lip torn and bleeding, with a wicked gleam in his eye.   
  
"Oh, you'll pay for that, Weasley!" He screamed and launched into a powerful attack. Ron was beaten back by the sheer ferocity of Wade's blows. I watched fascinated as the fight went on. No-one had ever fought for me before...well, I know Ron was fighting more for Harry, but it was still nice to see someone else try and put that bastard in his place. Ron managed to get in a couple of well placed blows, almost knocking Wade out, but Wade always managed to stagger up and fight back. Hermione and I had a lot of trouble holding Harry back. I knew how Wade fought, and I didn't want Harry to get hurt. Finally, I could take no more of the fighting. There was fighting merely to do some ego-damage, but this was serious fighting, and if it went on much longer Wade would be looking to kill Ron.   
  
"Enough!" I shouted at them. Both boys paused in their fighting. "Wade, put him down. You don't have a problem with him. It's me you have a problem with." Wade turned away from Ron and advanced on me. He had a psychopathic look in his eye, and I was beginning to feel scared. I forced myself to stare him down.  
  
"Too right I have a problem with you, gay boy," he sneered. "I was friends with you for years. And you go and betray all that we stand for by fucking that little shit? What sort of friend are you?"   
  
"I'm the sort of friend who never turns his back on another friend no matter what that friend has got into. Remember all the stuff that happened when we were kids? Who kept your secrets, Wade? Who did you trust? Who trusted you? Who never betrayed you no matter how dire the consequences?"   
"That doesn't matter anymore," he hissed. "So I got into a little bit of trouble. All kids do."   
"Murdering someone isn't a little bit of trouble," I hissed in his ear. It had been his secret for years, and I didn't want to divulge it to the others. Besides, I felt like I had something to prove. He blanched.   
"You promised not to tell!"   
"And I haven't. That's the kind of friend I am. And I haven't changed just because I have feelings for Harry the hero. You have the problem, Wade, not me. And I hate you for it!"   
  
Wade hammered a punch into my stomach and I staggered back, winded.   
"Come on then, you bastard!" he screamed. I launched myself at him, Harry and Ron not far behind me. It was bloody and brutal, but then that's what you expect when the psycho fights.   
  
"Enough! What is going on here?" All fighting ceased and we looked up at Snape's advancing form, Hermione beside him clutching a stitch in her side. Wade stood up and smoothed down his robes. He looked a mess. Mind you, not many people stupid enough to take on Weasley survived with their face intact.  
  
"Weasley attacked me, sir!" he whined.   
"Liar!" I yelled. "We were provoked, sir, Elliott was..."  
"Elliot started it all!" yelled Harry at the same time.   
"SILENCE!" thundered Snape. "Detention, all of you! Midnight, in the dungeons. Now get back to your common rooms. Malfoy, a word if you please!"   
  
I followed Snape with a heavy heart. I had no idea what he would have to say to me, but I prepared myself for yet more derogatory comments about my sexuality. I said nothing once I was sat in Snape's office, just looked at the floor, my mouth dry. The silence continued for far too long. I looked at Snape's face. He looked terrified. Finally, he spoke.   
  
"I see that you've been getting yourself into a spot of bother, young Malfoy."   
"Yes, Professor," I mumbled. "Er, the Slytherins found out..."   
"That you have been harbouring feelings for Potter. Yes, that has been rather obvious."   
"But they just turned on me for no reason!" Snape sighed and his eyes met mine. I felt trapped, like a mouse that's been invited to dinner and found out that he's the main course. I fidgeted under his intense gaze.   
  
"Malfoy, falling for Potter and hanging around with him and his friends is not exactly no reason," he said. "And before you say anything about not changing: you have changed. You've become a nicer person. You have to realise that this is intolerable in the eyes of many Slytherins."   
"What, so you want me to just dump the only people who accept me..." I began, but Snape silenced me with a wave of his hand.   
"I am not saying that at all." He sighed. "This isn't coming out right. What I am trying to say is...well, this is quite hard for me to say, you realise, I have never spoken about it to anyone and this is not going outside these four walls." I nodded.   
  
"I just want you to know...I can sympathise exactly with your position. I went through the same experience myself." I was dumbfounded. I had not been expecting this at all. This was just so unlike Snape! I was speechless for a moment. I must have looked pretty stupid, sitting there with my mouth hanging open.   
  
"Wow. So, who was the Gryffindor?" I blurted out, and blushed when he scowled at me. "Sorry."   
"No, don't be, I suppose it can't harm you knowing. It was... Potter."   
"Harry's dad?" My mind was whirling. Harry's dad and Snape? Eww!   
  
"Yes, Harry's dad. We hated each other, much like you and young Potter. But one night at the Yule Ball someone spiked the drinks. We all got very drunk and me and James...  
  
"Anyway, that one kiss led to others, and that led to...something else. And then everyone found out. James denied it, of course, and then got together with Lily almost immediately afterwards, and that broke me. I hated him more than ever, after that, and the Slytherins of course didn't believe him when he said it wasn't true...one of my friends had seen us together a week after the Yule Ball, and it was the start of my own personal hell. Hell that lasted until the end of school. It was part of the reason why I became a Death Eater, so I could get back some of the respect that I had lost in the aftermath of my affair with James.   
  
"I'm telling you this, Malfoy, because I wanted to clear things up with you. I did not send you away because I was disgusted. I sent you away because you confessing to these feelings brought back so many painful memories, and I wanted to keep them locked away as much as possible. And then, when the Slytherins found out...well, let's just say I'm a coward. I had kept these feelings hidden for a long time, and I didn't want to experience them again. I also wanted to let you know that this is not going to be easy. But then young Potter has done something that I wish his father had done - he has stuck by you."   
  
A long pause followed while I digested this information. Snape picked up his quill and began to write.   
"Go now, Malfoy, I have to prepare you detentions. And think about what I have said. It will not be easy. But then, you have what I had not. You have people to talk to. Talk to them. Talk to Potter. Talk to Broadhurst. You do not need to be alone, Malfoy. Not like I was."   
  



	8. 8

  
Alan: Hah! I get to write first today! Well, we're glad so many of you seem to like our humble little offering. It's not bad at all, is it, considering that this was our first attempt at slash!   
Wyv: But thanks to the marvellous response we've been getting, this fic seems to write itself! Chapter 8 already...wow!   
Alan: Thank you to: Tani (no Miracle Grow as of yet, although it might help for when we get writer's block!), Damy (glad you like it!) Brightstar, Just Silver, Cat Samwise (Bel: Sorry! That speech was my fault, blame me. It just wrote itself :) ) PepperjackCandy and SophieB. for reviewing our last chapter.   
Bel: Oh, and GO HENMAN! Second half of the semi-finals of Wimbledon today, he better win! *grumbles at the rain that caused the match to be called off yesterday* Anyway, on with the story! Hope you all enjoy this chapter!   
  
  
Chapter 8  
  
  
I was not looking forward to our detention that evening. At ten to midnight I made my way down to the dungeons just in front of Wade. I could feel him staring at me. He has one evil stare, that boy. I ignored him as best I could and walked on, straight-backed and proud. I had noticed that he'd refused to go to the hospital wing after the fight and was sporting a deep purple black eye. No doubt Pansy would have fawned over him. Poor bastard.   
  
We entered the dungeons. Unsurprisingly we were the first ones there. I sat on a desk near the front while Wade seated himself at the back. He was still staring at me. I wish I knew what he was planning. I pushed all thoughts of Wade from my mind and thought over what Snape had told me earlier. It explained a lot of things, like why he hated Harry so much, and why he was so nervous around homosexuals. Poor thing. I thought I had it tough.   
  
Ron and Harry came in five minutes later. I smiled at Harry and he sat next to me, resting his head on my shoulder. Ron kept glancing back at Wade and whispering derogatory comments about him to us, which made us smile. I was beginning to feel nervous as midnight crawled past. I had never had a detention from Snape, but Harry assured me that it would be extremely nasty.   
  
Snape arrived eventually, ten minutes late. He closed his eyes when he saw me and Harry, and I guessed that he was again trying to suppress the memory of James. Finally he looked up.   
  
"Weasley and Potter, Filch is waiting for you in his office. He has some tasks for you." I gave them a sympathetic look as they walked out. Filch gave the nastiest detentions ever. Snape then turned to me and Wade.   
  
"Malfoy and Elliott, kindly make your way to the Transfiguration classroom. Professor McGonagall had some trouble this afternoon when the pigs that the Year Seven catch-up group were meant to be Transfiguring went on the rampage. The room is a mess. I want you two to clean it up without magic." Groaning, we carried ourselves to the Transfiguration room.  
  
It was indeed a mess. There was furniture lying around in disarray. Papers were everywhere. And pig dung settled in heaps on the floor. I smiled as Wade discovered the latter by stepping in some and cursing loudly. Rolling up my sleeves I set to work, not really caring that Wade let me do most of the work.   
  
"Why do you do it?" The sudden question startled me and I dropped the stool I was carrying. Right onto my foot.   
"Oh, bloody hell!" I screamed as my foot flared with pain. I limped to the nearest stool and sat down, rubbing my foot until the pain ceased.   
"Sorry. Why do I do what?"   
  
"Potter. What's the attraction?" I shrugged, picking up a mop. "Come on, there must be something. What was it about him that tempted you to risk everything you've ever known? You must have known that we'd turn on you."  
"Blimey, a civil conversation," I muttered. "Well, I wasn't exactly planning on letting my feelings become common knowledge, let alone act on them!" When Wade said nothing I decided to carry on talking. It was probably a mistake, but I figured if I could just make him understand he'd be more civil towards me in future.  
  
"Well, when I first realised that I was gay I went to talk to Snape. He wasn't exactly supportive. Then Harry saw me crying in a corridor, and we started to talk. He helped me to accept the fact that I was gay, and he accepted me for who I am, not who I pretended to be. He's a gorgeous person. When you lot turned on me he was there to pick me up. He makes me feel so good about myself. When I'm with him, I'm happy. Happier than I've ever been in my life."   
"Wow," he whispered. There was a long silence and we started cleaning again. I mopped the floor and Wade started half-heartedly cleaning the tables.   
  
"I miss you, you know," he said at last.   
"Well you haven't exactly shown it!" I snapped, harsher than I intended.   
"I mean it," he went on. "You used to be such a laugh. We always had a good time together, and we stuck together no matter what. No-one else understands me. I wish we were still friends."  
"There's no reason why we can't be again," I replied. His demeanour tonight was surprising and I almost began to view him as human again. Almost. Until he opened his mouth again.   
  
"Yes there is, Draco," he replied softly. "You see, I've come to really despise you."   
"For no reason at all? Fine!" I snapped. "Be that way, you arrogant, self-centred bastard!" I flung the mop at him and busied myself with tidying the scattered papers. I studiously ignored him until the room was spotless again.   
  
Wade strode out of the dungeons in front of me and carried on walking instead of going up to the dorms. He didn't look happy, but then he never did around me anymore. Probably going to meet Pansy for a late-night snogging session, I thought wearily, settling down into bed and falling asleep almost instantly.  
  
I awoke the next morning feeling decidedly happier. Snape didn't hate me, I had the support of Karl and Fletch from my House, and I was Harry's boyfriend. This last fact made me happiest of all. Through being Harry's boyfriend I was beginning to make friends of my own, true friends, friends who weren't Wade. I thought Wade was fun and exciting when we were younger, even after, well, a lot of things. But I was glad that recent events had opened my eyes and exposed him to be the insane bastard he really was.  
  
And it was Sunday. That meant a whole day of being with my Harry. A whole day without Wade or Pansy, free from all the unpleasantness that made my life hell during the week.   
  
I dressed myself and brushed my hair. As I looked in the mirror I noticed that my hair was getting long and I wondered idly whether I should cut it or let it grow.   
  
I froze as something in the corner of the mirror caught my eye. No, I prayed silently. This can't be happening, what in seven hells is going on? I turned slowly, my stomach filling with dread.   
  
My father was leaning by the dormitory door. And he didn't look happy at all.  
  



	9. 9

  
Bel: Yes, another chapter so soon after the last one! Aren't you the lucky devils! Don't expect it all the time though!  
Alan: Yeah, we might actually have to start thinking about what we're writing at one stage!   
Wyv: Bloody thing won't leave us alone now, it's been begging us to write it :) And we've got nothing better to do, so...voila! Chapter 9!   
Bel: Big thank you and huggles to: Knowing Shadows, SophieB, Lelio, Hades, Cat Samwise, maidmarian62, Narcissus Medjai, Dolphin's_Angel, Ruka-chan, Tani, Banance, Emily and Angel for reviewing chapter 8. A special welcome to all those who've just found this fic, it's always nice to find new victims...I mean readers... for our fics!  
Wyv: Warning- Draco abuse. Slash. Not for the squeamish.   
Alan: Don't kill us, we adore Draco, but... the thing wrote itself :)  
  
Chapter 9.   
  
  
I stood staring at my father for what seemed like an eternity. How did he get here? Why was he here? I composed myself and masked my feelings, giving my father a cold smile.   
  
"Hello, Father, what brings you here?" I asked as pleasantly as I could.   
"Now is not the time to play games, Draco." my father replied, a cruel half-smile playing on his lips. It terrified me, that smile. It meant he was feeling particularly evil. He always wore that smile whenever he was about to participate in a spot of Muggle torture.   
  
"I don't know what you're talking about," I lied, thinking it best to appear ignorant. It had worked for me many times in the past, but I had a feeling that this time, my father was not to be fooled.   
  
"Oh no? Then how about I remind you?" replied my father softly, coming closer to me. I took a step backwards.   
"Father... what are you doing?" He leaned down and whispered in my ear.   
"I'm teaching my son the fucking faggot a lesson!" With that he gave me a resounding clip around the ear. I glared at him. He did know! Who could have told him, the Slytherins were all sworn to secrecy...  
  
The answer came to me in a flash. Wade! He was never one for obeying 'petty rules', as he called them. That must have been where he was headed last night after detention, owling my father! How dare he! The fear that I had felt at seeing my father dissolved away and was replaced by pure, undiluted rage.  
  
"So what if I'm a faggot!" I yelled at him. "It's not against any laws, is it?"   
"It's against the law of nature!"   
"No it bloody well isn't!"   
"Yes it bloody well is, especially when you're fucking the enemy!"  
"I'm not fucking him!"  
"Oh, so it's true love, is it? Ahh!" I finally lost control and flew at my father. I was rewarded by a stunning blow to the head, but I didn't care. At that moment I really wanted to kill him.   
  
I dealt my father a blow to the stomach, knocking the wind out of him. While he was catching his breath I got him into a headlock and squeezed. Die, bastard! I thought grimly. He responded by headbutting me and I staggered back, releasing my hold on him, blood flowing freely from my nose. My father caught me with an uppercut to the chin, sending me sprawling. Growling, I got up and lunged for my father as he reached for his wand. I rugby-tackled him, knocking his wand from his grasp.  
  
We froze as we heard footsteps approaching the dorm. My father pulled me down behind one of the beds just as the door creaked open and someone looked in. I could just see a pair of feet from the position I was lying in. I held my breath. Please let them come into the room, please let them find us, I prayed. However, the person just appeared to glance around the room before walking away.   
  
My father released me and got up, picking up his wand. He waved it and muttered something I couldn't hear, then turned back to me, that evil half-smile back in place.  
  
"I've put a Silencing Charm and Repelling Charm on this room," he said, almost pleasantly. "It means I'll be able to teach you a lesson properly. Crucio!" The pain hit me, more terrible than I had ever felt in my life. I screamed, curling up into a little ball on the floor, hands clawing at my head in an attempt to claw the pain out of me. I wanted to do anything to end the pain, oh please gods, let the pain end soon...  
  
The pain lifted suddenly and I got to my feet, shaking. I could hardly speak, my throat was that sore from screaming.  
"Why?" I croaked. "I'm your son!"   
"You're no son of mine, Draco!" he hissed, brandishing his wand again. I was pushed onto my bed by an invisible force, and stainless steel ropes fastened me in place by my wrists and ankles, with a gag across my mouth.   
  
"In fact," he continued, "if you get out of this alive, which I doubt, you will no longer be my son and heir. I have written you out of the will and formally denounced you. You no longer carry the name Malfoy." Another flick of his wand brought an array of nasty-looking instruments to him. He held one up to the light and I noted the curve of the blade and the cruel, jagged edge. I tried to scream.   
  
"What is it, Draco?" asked my father...sorry, Lucius, unconcernedly, as if I'd done nothing more than brought his attention to something interesting I'd spotted in a museum. I tried to scream again. "Oh, the gag? I know I don't need it, but too much screaming can really wreck my concentration. I could use magical methods of torture, of course, but Muggle methods are just so much more...satisfying.  
  
"Do you know, Draco," he added, still in the same chatty, indifferent tone, "I could open a man's ribcage, pin his entrails back with sticks, yet still keep him alive for days? I'm not going to do that to you, of course," he concluded, seeing my horror-struck face, "but by all the gods it will feel that bad!"   
  
The next hour was the worst of my life. The pain was even worse than the Cruciatus curse, as at least that could stop at any moment. This was going to kill for weeks afterwards. If I survived that long, which was looking increasingly unlikely as the hour wore on, and I begged silently for the blessed relief of death.   
  
Just when it looked like I was going to get my wish Lucius stopped, packed all his things away and released me.   
"And now, Draco, I'll say goodbye. See you in Hell, as there's no place in Heaven for creatures like you!" And with that, he Disapparated.  
  
It was becoming harder and harder to breathe by the second and I rolled off the bed and struggled to my feet.   
  
I stared in horror at my bloodstained sheets. I just couldn't believe that my own father had done that to me, all just because of my sexuality! I looked at my hands, stained crimson with my own blood, and winced as I noticed the stump where the little finger of my right hand had been.  
  
I staggered forward then, dizziness swamping me, grabbing hold of one of the bed posts for support. I coughed and felt blood trickle down my chin. I had to get out of there.   
  
I had managed to stagger downstairs and ten yards along a corridor before I collapsed. I was extremelylucky to even get that far.   
  
I could hear footsteps approaching. I only just managed to open my eyes to see who it was. Wade was standing over me, a mixture of fear, revulsion and horror on his face.   
  
"Oh shit oh shit oh shit, what have I done!" he kept muttering to himself, backing away.   
"Wade...help me, Wade..." I gasped. Another coughing fit wracked my body with pain and as I blacked out I could hear running footsteps and a lot of shouting.  
  



	10. 10

Bel: This is a National Health announcement. Due to an overload of angst, drama and Draco getting hurt in previous chapters, this chapter will contain very bad examples of humour, as the authors needed a break from all that depressing stuff. We would like to reassure our readers that normal service will be resumed in the next chapter. Until then, enjoy :)  
  
Wyv: Thank you to: Evenstar, Prongs, Cat Samwise, Evil Angel, OMG, SophieB, Becks, Just Silver and Brightstar. We've passed the 100 review mark! *throws a party* We love you guys! *hugs and passes out the booze*   
  
Alan: This chapter is dedicated to Wyv's dad, who gave us the idea for this chapter when we were halfway through it, which meant having to rewrite the whole bloody thing :)   
  
  
Disclaimer: Everything HP belongs to JKR. The Death of Rats, the Tooth Fairy (and Death as an anthropomorphic personification in general), Unseen University and Nobby Nobbs belong to Terry Pratchett. Terry Pratchett belongs to himself. All we own is the Death of Ducks, and even then we're not sure whether Terry's invented him yet :)  
  
*  
  
At first, there was nothing. Not even blackness. Just...emptiness. A large void of emptiness. And the strangest thing about it was I didn't feel anything. I felt nothing, not even pain. Or peace. Just nothing.   
  
Then, gradually, as the world came back into play, I was aware of many things. The pain was the most prominent one. It felt as though every cell of my body was on fire. And I could hear the whispered voices around me, even though I couldn't see anything. I couldn't move, I couldn't even scream. It was as if I was locked in this shell of pain, yet painfully aware of everything going on around me.   
  
Suddenly the whispered voices became shouting voices. I could hear screaming, yelling, even crying, the sound of running feet and the crash of the medical trolley.  
  
Then, there was the strangest sensation. Everything seemed to just ebb away, even the pain. There was one moment, I can't really describe what I felt. I just felt extremely light-headed, calm. And then I was floating near the ceiling looking down at myself. It was....weird.   
  
I could see everything that was going on. There were a bunch of medi-wizards who I had never seen before rushing around me. One was attaching something to my chest, the others grabbing items that I couldn't quite see off the trolley.   
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione were standing near the bed, huddled together. They seemed to be beyond tears, and were just staring soundlessly at the bed. Then Harry's shoulder's started shaking again and Ron and Hermione hugged him, tears glistening in their eyes.   
  
So I was dying. Death didn't frighten me, at least Lucius wouldn't be there to get me. Although, knowing that bastard, he would at least try to find a way to get to me to make sure that my afterlife was as bad as my life had been. I glanced around the room again. There was a figure huddled in a corner, his head buried in his arms, crying. It was Wade. There was something unnerving about watching him cry. I'd never seen him do anything so... human.   
  
"Oy, mister!" The voice came from behind me. I turned around. There was nothing there. "Down 'ere, mate!" I looked down. A duck - or, at least, the skeleton of a duck - glared up at me. It was wearing a cowl of blackest night, and tucked behind one of its wings was a small scythe.   
  
"What the hell are you?" I demanded.   
"Oh, that's gratitude for ya all right! I come all the way up 'ere to do me job an' all I get is abuse! I don't like your tone, mister!" The duck turned its back on me and sat down in a huff.  
  
"Sorry, but... who are you?" I asked.   
"Death of Ducks, mate."   
"Excuse me? Death of Ducks?!" I started to laugh but it turned back to me and glared and I turned my laugh into a cough.  
"'s right. Death of Ducks. Why, d'you wanna make somethin' of it, mate?"   
"No, not at all!"   
"'s a nasty cough you got there, mate."   
"Yeah." I cleared my throat. "Um, why do you have a Cockney accent? I was told that Death had a sort of voice like old tombs, eternity, kind of thing."   
"Oh, the Boss does. But not me, nah. I thought I'd be a bit creative. Anyway, to business."   
"Yeah, um, what exactly are you doing here? I don't actually think we've got any ducks..."  
  
"You don't. But anyway I'm not 'ere for them. I'm 'ere for you."   
"For me?!"   
"'s right. The Boss is a bit busy at the moment, we've always got a bit of a hectic schedule around about now anyway, winter approachin', people freezin', stupid buggers lettin' the axe slip when choppin' firewood, that sorta thing. And that plague over in Quirm 'asn't 'elped matters. So the Boss turns to me and says, Cecil, got a job for you. Go and see to this feller. So I does. Got a problem with the name Cecil, 'ave yer?"   
"No, no!" I cleared my throat again. "Er, you've got the glare really good..."  
"Yeah, there's nuffin' so terrifying as the glare of a maddened duck." I suppressed the urge to laugh again. It was all so ridiculous.  
"So, er, well, it's hard to know what to say, really. I always thought that Death was a figment of the imagination, like the Tooth Fairy or something."   
  
"Oh, so I'm a figment of the imagination, am I?" I turned. A small brunette in a smart suit and gauze wings carrying a bag was behind me.   
"Er, you're the Tooth Fairy?"   
"A Tooth Fairy. There's lots of us," she replied. "Sharon." I shook her hand.   
"Um, you as well, eh? I think all the kids have lost all their baby teeth..."   
"Oh, no, I'm always around for a death. Can't have all those teeth going to waste, can I? So if you'll just let Cecil do his job, I can get on with mine."   
"Er..." Cecil had unpacked his scythe and was giving it a couple of test swings. The Tooth Fairy pulled out a pair of pliers. A large pair. "Now, just hold on..."   
  
"Hang on! Stop! Put that scythe down!" A small... thing materialised and ran towards Cecil. It was the skeleton of a rat, also with the black-cowl-and-scythe combo favoured by the various Grim Reapers. The Death of Rats, presumably.  
"'Ello, mate, what you doin' 'ere?" asked Cecil, still keeping a hold on his scythe. "If you'll just bear with me, I'll just despatch of this mortal and we'll chat." He swung his scythe again.   
SQUEAK! said the newcomer in a voice as old as the universe. Cecil dropped the scythe.   
  
"Don't you do that to me! You know I 'ate The Voice! It's bad enough when the Boss does it!"   
"That's what I want to talk to you about, Cecil! You have to come with me. There's been a Right Royal Cock-Up."   
"Eh?"   
"It appears that you're in the wrong story."  
"You what? You mean this isn't Unseen University?"   
"Er, no, it's Hogwarts," I said.   
"Oh, bloody 'ell!"   
"That's what old Pratchett's been saying. Sort of. He's been going mad, looking for you."   
"'ow mad?"   
"Um, sort of throwing the china about and threatening all sorts of things if I don't come and find you and tell you to get your arse back to where it's supposed to be."   
"Ah. What sort of things?"   
"Um, erasing us all from existence, feeding you to the Death of Sharks, or..." the Death of Rats gulped. "Giving you to Nobby Nobbs as a pet."   
"Oh, my gods! Not Nobby! Right, you go back and tell Terry I'm just comin'." The Death of Ducks turned back to me and gave an embarrassed grin. "Well, sorry, mate. See you. Dependin' on who's got what duty." All three disappeared. I shrugged and decided to rejoin the land of the living. At least I could handle most of the living, they weren't quite so...bizarre.   
  
  
  



	11. 11

  
Wyv: So you liked the last chapter?? *grin* Well I have to say sorry to those who didn't like it...you try living with my dad and staying sane when he gives you a chapter idea! It's not possible!   
Bel: Thankies to: Prongs, LadyLyra, Ruka-chan, Laurin York, LanaMariah (Sorry you don't like our Snapey :) We just thought it'd be touching, and we don't care that what we do has been done a million times over, we just love writing this fic :) ), Cat Samwise (do a prequel!), Hades (don't worry, he will suffer!), Becks (can't remember if he rides a terrier or cat...I quite like terriers meself), SophieB, Foxy77, OMG (no we weren't drunk...honest! :) Last chapter was the product of a mind warped, nothing more), Damy, Banance and Brightstar.   
  
Wyv: Thank you Damy for pointing out that you can't Disapparate on Hogwarts grounds...we'd totally forgotten that! *whacks self on head* I need Hermione to help me out sometimes! OK, read 'Disapparated' in chapter 9 as 'disappeared', cos then Luci could have made himself invisible or something...  
  
Bel: Anyway, on with the story!   
  
Chapter 11!   
  
*  
  
I could hear a lot of whispering as I came round. I wanted to open my eyes but I just couldn't find the strength; besides, it seemed as though my left eyelid was swollen shut.   
  
Someone started stroking my hair. I almost jumped. No-one had ever done that to me before, not even my mother. I forced my eyes open. Harry was standing there, tears streaming down his gorgeous face. When he realised I was awake he grabbed me into a hug.   
  
"Drac! You're okay!" he exclaimed. "I was so worried, I thought you...oh, Drac!" He squeezed me tight, sobbing.   
"Ow, ow, ow, not so hard! It hurts!" I cried. He released me and stepped back, taking hold of my hand.   
"Sorry, love!" He kissed my hand.  
"How long have I been out?"   
"About a week. We were so worried about you." He kissed me again and we sat chatting for a while about what I'd missed at school.   
  
"Snape gave me the lesson off cos I kept bursting into tears and disrupting the class." He gave me an embarrassed grin. "I think he wanted me to go and see McGonagall for detention or something, but I had to come here. Oh, and another thing. Wade hasn't been seen since... that night."   
"Wade's gone?" I asked. It didn't surprise me. Wade was always running away from trouble.   
"Yeah." We sat in silence for a moment.   
  
"Hon, I'm sorry, I have to ask this. What exactly happened to you? Wade ran into us, he said we had to get Madam Pomfrey and that something had happened to you and it was all his fault. Then he just kept howling and refused to say anything else."   
"Really? Well Wade owled Lucius, telling him about us."   
"Oh, my gods!" Harry's hand flew to his mouth. "Your own father did that to you?"   
"He's not my father," I spat bitterly. "He disowned me just before he did this!"   
"Oh gods! I can't believe anyone could do that to their own son!"   
"You never knew Lucius. A more twisted, evil, sadistic bastard there never was. Worse than Hitler, if that's possible."   
  
The door opened and Hermione and Ron came in.   
"Hey, you're awake!" grinned Ron. "Feel up to eating? I sneaked some stuff up from the kitchens, seeing as Harry's been refusing to eat lately."   
"Ron!" scolded Harry fondly. "Do you ever think about anything other than your stomach?" Ron grinned.   
"Yeah, sometimes I think about sex. Or Quidditch."   
"Men!" muttered Hermione. "Do you want anything to eat, Draco?"   
"Got any oranges? Or grapes, I could murder a bunch of grapes."   
"Too healthy," said Ron through a mouthful of cake, shaking his head.   
"I bought some grapes up with me," said Hermione, giving Ron one of her Looks as she handed me the grapes. She looked just like McGonagall when she did that.   
"What?" said Ron. "Cakes are so much better than fruit, isn't that right, Harry?" Harry nodded, taking a bite out of an eclair. I ate a grape. It tasted divine, but swallowing was a little hard.   
  
Madam Pomfrey came in and Ron hastily shoved the food from sight under the duvet.   
"How's the patient?" asked Madam Pomfrey, bustling over.   
"Aching. And my chest still hurts, my left eyelid doesn't want to open properly, I've got cramp in my left thigh, my right leg keeps going numb, and I'm missing a finger!" I replied. Madam Pomfrey handed me a potion.   
"Drink this. It will help your wounds to heal and take away the pain. I want to keep you in for a couple of weeks to keep an eye on you."   
"A couple of weeks!" I moaned. That meant I would miss Harry's Quidditch match against Hufflepuff.   
"Yes, a couple of weeks. You lost an alarming amount of blood and nearly died. I have to make sure you're fully fit and functioning again."   
"Can't I go to the Quidditch?" I pleaded, doing my best puppy-dog-eyes face.   
"Certainly not! The excitement of the game could put unnecessary strain on your heart." I slumped back onto the pillows in a huff. "And don't pull that face, it's for your own good. Have you got everything you want?" I nodded. "Good. I'll be back to check up on you in a couple of hours." She bustled off.   
  
"I'm going to miss Quidditch!" I whined.   
"Never mind, love, I'll make sure we win for you," grinned Harry, kissing my forehead.   
"But I'm still going to miss Quidditch! I want to go to the Quidditch!"   
"You're starting to sound like a spoiled brat," said Hermione.   
"I *am* a spoiled brat! I'm going to miss the Quidditch!" I whined again.   
"Yeah, but you also get two weeks off school," said Ron. Fair point. Two whole weeks away from the Slytherins. It certainly had an appeal.   
"All right," I humphed. "But Harry, make sure you win, all right? And I want a second-by-second report on the match!"   
"Deal!" grinned Harry. A bell rang. "Well I've got to go for Divination. Two whole hours with Professor bloody Trelawny predicting my death." He rolled his eyes. "I almost envy you. I'll be back after dinner." He kissed me gently. "And don't worry, Drac. We'll get the bastard who did this to you."   
"That's just the sort of thing to say to get me worried!" I called after him. I blew him a kiss as he waved from the door, then settled back on my pillows, determined to get some sleep. It would make the time pass quicker until I had to see him again.   
  
A sob caused me to open my eyes. Wade was standing over me, shaking.   
"Oh gods oh gods oh gods!" he was muttering, then he flung himself on his knees beside me and grabbed my hand.   
  
"Draco, I'm so, so, so sorry! How can you ever forgive me?" he howled, squeezing my hand.   
"Ow, my hand, let go of my hand! You're hurting me!" I yelled. Wade stopped crushing my hand and stared at it, horror-struck. It was the hand with the missing finger. He dropped it and sprang to his feet.   
  
"Draco, I'm so sorry!" he sobbed, and turned and ran out of the room.   
"Wade, wait!" I called after him. But he had gone.  



	12. 12

  
Wyv: Thanks to everyone who reviewed! We adore all your comments.  
Bel: Unfortunately no roll of honour this time cos we can't get into our stats page to see who reviewed.   
Lan: List of thanks coming up in the next chapter. So for now...  
  
Chapter 12, in which we take a trip into Wade's mind...  
  
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**Wade's POV**  
  
I ran from the hospital wing as fast as I could. Draco, oh, gods, Draco! I did that to him! It was all my fault! He could have died because of me! And I couldn't go on with another death on my conscience. Especially not Draco's.   
  
Because when I saw Draco lying on the floor, so near to death, I saw him in a totally different light. I didn't see Draco Malfoy, the disgusting little queer I'd been making fun of for the past few weeks.   
  
I saw Draco Malfoy, my best friend, my oldest friend, lying on the floor dying because of what I'd done. At first I was terrified, and not just because I was worried that it would be traced back to me. I was scared because I thought he would die.   
  
And when I saw him lying there on that hospital bed, fighting for life, I felt ashamed. I've never felt ashamed of myself before, and it wasn't a pleasant feeling. And I realised that, despite what I'd been saying to him, I didn't want him to die.   
  
I suppose the main reason I had been so horrible to him was that I had enjoyed the power and status associated with being Draco's best friend. I had always been taught to strive for power and status, and when Draco was outed by Pansy I could see that by associating with him afterwards would mean a loss of that respect that I had become used to. So I denounced him. Yeah, pathetic, isn't it?   
  
But I really thought that, you know, once he'd had some sense knocked into him, he'd see that what he was doing was stupid, stop hanging around and lusting after the Gryffindors and come back to where he belonged. With us. In Slytherin.  
  
And when he continued to choose them over us, well, it hurt. I for one felt betrayed, and Pansy was beside herself with fury. Draco was going against everything we had ever stood for by even exchanging one friendly word with the Gryffindors, let alone sitting with them. I really did start to hate him then. I thought that he thought he was better than us. That's why I owled his father. I wanted him to be taught a lesson.   
  
Still... I didn't think that the lesson would be so severe. I just thought, you know, that Lucius would just... I don't know. Take him away from the school or something. Something that would hurt but not leave any lasting damage. I didn't think that Lucius would actually try to kill his son, his only son. And when I saw him lying there, covered in blood... I panicked.   
  
And when he... he stopped breathing... well, I did something then that I had never done before. I cried. In front of all those Gryffindors as well. That was dignity straight out of the window, but I just didn't care by then. I just wanted Draco to be okay.   
  
When he came round again, it was such a relief, I started crying harder. Then Harry kissed him. It was... I have to admit, it was quite sweet. He really does care for Draco. And Draco, well, Draco loves him, there's no doubt about that. You can see it in his eyes. The eyes that normally never betrayed any emotion light up with joy and love when he looks at Harry.   
  
Then I went and asked him for forgiveness. Well, more sort of pleaded. Begged, I think, would also be appropriate. Only I didn't realise that I was squeezing his mutilated hand. It really sickened me, and I'm not normally that squeamish. You aren't when you're the son of a Death Eater and you killed your first person aged 11. I suppose it was the knowledge that I had a part in hurting my friend, and the fact that his own father did this to him. Anyway, I didn't hang around for an answer, I just ran. I think he called out to me but I didn't stop. I couldn't.  
  
I've always been a bit of a coward. It's a case of act first, run from the consequences until the hysteria's died down, then emerge acting as if nothing had happened, if possible destroying the evidence that I ever had any part in it. And I must admit, I'm scared. Draco knows a hell of a lot of Dark stuff, more than me - in fact, he taught me most of what I know when we were younger. And I wouldn't be at all surprised if he wanted revenge. I know I would.   
  
I asked him to forgive me. That was a stupid thing to do. How can he forgive me, when I can't forgive myself? I've been a right twat lately, but I only realised that when Draco... nearly died.   
  
Gods, I feel so confused right now. I don't know what to do. I've been avoiding all the other Slytherins since it happened. There's probably a lot of rumours flying around, how could there not be in a school like this? But I just don't think I could face them and all their questions. Like I said, I'm a coward. A confused coward. Obviously, I can't avoid them during lessons, but there's a way around that. I don't sit with any of them, I ignore the ones that try and talk to me, and I don't talk at all. At breaks and in the evening I just disappear into my dorm or somewhere in the grounds. I've been trying to perfect the Animagus charm, at least it'll give me something to do, something to take my mind off things.   
  
I haven't been to see Draco since. I just couldn't face it. I could really do with someone to talk to, but the only person who really understands me is Draco, and I don't think he'd even want to look in my direction again. I could try and talk to the Gryffindors, but I hear Weasley's put out a death warrant on me, and I wouldn't exactly be Potter's favourite person. And as for Granger, well, she's brainy, she knows a lot of hexes, and I don't want to cross her. She can have quite a temper on her.   
  
I guess there's only one answer to all this...  
  
  
...run away and hide.  



	13. 13

Bel: Yay, after a four-day absence (gods, I cannot believe we survived without a computer for so long!) we're back!   
Wyv: The reason for our absence is: We were at the Reading Music Festival.   
Lan: It was brilliant! Band of the weekend: Green Day!   
Bel: Anyway... thank s for the following amazing people who reviewed chapters 11 and 12.  
Lan: That's: Evil Angel, Allie Potter, Prongs, Shades of Hades, SophieB, Eternal Haven, UserFriendly, Narcissus Medjai, RainShadow, Cat Samwise, LanaMariah, Damy, Ruka-chan, Foxy77, Alynnia*McKinnon, Lela Balturlyn, OMG, nodoubt13, Kissaki, foggynite, Becks, kawaiixsnake, Tani, Lanna, KasmiraKay and Tinuviel. We love you! If we've missed anyone, sorry! We love you too!  
Wyv: I think it's amazing that so many people adore our humble little fic. Better be careful, or our ego's won't even fit in the same country as us!  
Bel: Still, hope you enjoy this....Chapter 13! (Back to Draco's POV)   
  
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I had quite a few visitors in the two weeks I was in the hospital wing. Harry came up to see me every day. Sometimes he was with Ron and Hermione, and once, after the match, the whole Gryffindor Quidditch team came up with him to give a very detailed account of the match. The description went on for over an hour and Madam Pomfrey grew increasingly annoyed with the raucous shouts of the team. Karl and Fletch also came up to visit me, sometimes dragging up a few of the Slytherins with them, who, I suspect, were only there because Fletch flexed his muscles and looked threatening. And during the times where no-one was there, I had all my schoolwork to catch up on. At least it meant I was never bored; in fact, I was quite enjoying the solitude, away from the prying eyes and questions from the rest of the school. Wade didn't show up again, but then I wasn't really expecting him to.   
  
But all too soon it was time for me to go back to the normal life of the school. Time to face the students and their questions. Thankfully it was breakfast first, and I sat at the Gryffindor table. The Gryffindors were being quite friendly towards me now; the story of what Lucius had done to me had spread through the school like wildfire. Still, I wasn't really looking forward to meeting up with the Slytherins again.   
  
It wasn't actually that bad. I met up with the Slytherins for Transfiguration and they were being almost civil towards me, certainly not as hostile as they had been. I was working with Blaise Zabini and he was talking quite normally to me, although we had a bit of a disagreement over Harry, putting it mildly - that was a bit of a sticking point with them. They still couldn't believe that I was going out with The Boy Who Lived, and most saw it as an insult to Slytherin pride. The only Slytherins who were still being openly hostile to me and/or ignoring me however were Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy, but, as I had never really enjoyed their company to begin with, I saw this as an added bonus.  
  
Wade wasn't in Transfiguration, however. He didn't turn up for classes all day, and Blaise told me that he hadn't been seen for about a week. He was still getting his work in, but he seemed to be avoiding everyone. Part of me was relieved, as it meant that I wouldn't have to face him just yet. A larger part of me told me that he was being pathetic and I should hunt him out for revenge.  
  
I still wasn't sure whether or not to forgive him. I'd given the subject quite a lot of thought during those quiet moments in the hospital wing when I'd had nothing to do, and I was still undecided. I mean, he was my oldest friend, and friendships are quite hard to let go of, even though he'd been acting like a right twat lately.   
  
But there was still the matter of the betrayal. Even if I could forgive him that, I could never forget it. He told Lucius I was seeing Harry, and Lucius nearly killed me. He'd apologised to me, but... I was almost certain that it wasn't enough. Friends don't do that sort of thing. I really longed to give Wade a good smack, but it's a bit difficult when he's not around. He always hides. Wanker.  
  
Amazing as it seems, Wade does actually have a bit of a conscience. It's not much, but it is there if you look hard enough. He told me once he had two voices in his head, one that's really loud from deep, deep down, screaming, "Don't trust the bastards, kill 'em all!" The other one is soft and gentle, and can rarely be heard over the roaring of the other, although just occasionally when the other voice stops for a breather the soft voice can be heard. That's when he runs. He's not used to feeling emotion, it scares him, so he just hides until the other voice takes over again. Mind you, he was pretty high on something when he told me that, so it's probably just a load of bollocks, but it seems to make sense.   
  
I resolved to put the Wade issue from my mind for the time being and concentrate on living my life. I could deal with it when he turned up again, if he ever did, and in the meantime enjoy the relative tranquillity of school, not counting Potions where Pansy seemed determined to cause as many explosions as possible to annoy me.   
  
I had a free afternoon on Fridays while Harry was in double Herbology. I decided that today, two weeks after I had gone back to lessons, I would wander around the school grounds for a while before making my way over to the greenhouses to meet Harry. Part of me subconsciously wanted to find Wade and at least ask him why he told Lucius about me and Harry. We'd made a lot of hideouts in the grounds when we were younger that no-one else knew about, and it was more than likely that he would be sheltering in one of those.  
  
Half an hour later I was sitting in a little wooden treehouse we'd built in our first year in a tree overlooking the lake. Wade wasn't in there, and he hadn't been in any of our other bases, so it looks like I was wrong. He was always adept at hiding himself when he had to. So I contented myself with sitting in the treehouse sketching the view. It really was beautiful up there.  
  
I froze as I heard someone approach the tree and start to climb. I put my sketch in my pocket and climbed onto the roof from the front and down the back, where I would be hidden from view but still watch whoever was in there through a handy spy hole.  
  
Surprise, surprise, it was Wade. He had a stack of parchment with him, probably his school work. He looked quite ill, really pale, and his eyes were red. He was also shivering slightly in the chill wind. He sat down to do the work facing towards the back of the hut.   
  
I decided to surprise him. I climbed onto the roof and down the front again, and leaned in the doorframe. He didn't notice me, being completely absorbed in his work. I stood there watching him for ages, then, when he still didn't notice me, decided to give him a bit of a shock. I picked up a nail that had been on the floor, moved silently to him, grabbing him in a headlock and pressing the nail against his throat.   
  
"Well, well, this is where the bastards come to cower," I whispered after he had stopped screaming.   
"Draco!" he squeaked. "P-p-please don't hurt me!"   
"Now why would I want to do that?" I asked pleasantly. "Oh yes. Because you're a fucking little traitor who almost got me killed."   
"Draco, I'm so, so sorry, I honestly didn't think he'd try and kill you, I swear!" Wade screamed, as I increased the pressure of the nail on his neck ever so slightly. He was crying, pleading and begging for forgiveness. I was actually quite enjoying it in a perverse sort of way. Revenge can be so satisfying. Finally I'd had enough of his snivelling and let him go. He crawled into a corner, hugging his knees, staring at me with wild, frightened eyes. I pulled my wand out and advanced on him. He shrank farther back into the corner.  
  
"So you're going to kill me, are you?" he asked, unable to keep the fear from his voice.   
"By rights I should kill you," I said, leaning down so my face was mere inches away from his. "Or I should at least do to you what my father did to me. Do you have any idea what it's like, Wade, to be so despised by your own father that he tries to kill you? That he tortures you to within an inch of your life?" Wade couldn't think of anything to say, and it seemed he couldn't tear his gaze away from mine, his usually emotionless blue eyes now filled with fear.   
  
"Voldemort would have been proud of you, Wade," I sneered. "A man who puts his ambition before his friends and even before his family. You came close to killing one of the few people who actually cared about you. You killed your father. I know, you say it was an accident, you'd been having an argument and you just lost control, but you still killed him. You're ideal Death Eater material, Wade." I fell silent after that, just looking at him. Gone was the cocky demeanour, gone was the irrepressible arrogance. He was just slumped in his corner crying his eyes out, and I almost felt sorry for him. I stood up and pocketed my wand.  
  
"I'm not going to kill you, Wade," I said softly, and he stopped sobbing and looked up.   
"No?"   
"No." I grinned. "You're much more fun to me alive." The bell rang then and I climbed out of the treehouse and down the tree.   
"See you in lessons on Monday," I called up to him as I left to visit my Harry. 


	14. 14

Wyv: Hi all! Sorry it took so long to get this chapter out... blame that on university and the demanding pressures of being a fresher!   
Bel: Thanks to: Joe, Tash, Lady Gambalerina, Sarah-chan, RandomThought, Myr, Luca, MadHarlequin, Di-chan, Abaddon, Blackswan15, Evil Windstar, jez_two, Sandra Solaria Dees, Cat Samwise, Destiny, Alan Flewker, Alynnia*McKinnon, Juliana Black, Lavender Gold, JediGinny, Isis D, Foxy77, Twilight Angel, OMG and Prongs.   
Lan: I think that's everyone, sorry to you if you've been missed :) Sorry again for our prolonged silence... may this chapter make up for it! I think it's slightly verging on melodrama, but it was a lot of fun to write :)   
  
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The weekend passed without much incident, apart from me and Harry stumbling in on Seamus and some random person I'd never seen "confirming their love" in the common room. We didn't see anything of Wade, which was to be expected, I suppose he'd found somewhere else to hide. And I wasn't really surprised to see that he wasn't in Potions on Monday morning as I sat down.   
  
The minutes ticked by. Snape was late, which was extremely unusual. I started an argument with Seamus about the impending England versus Ireland Quidditch friendly at the weekend, and just as he was starting to bore me with the different qualities of the Irish Chasers (which included, among others, nice arses) I heard Pansy squeal, "Wade! Where have you *been*, I've been sooo *worried* about you!" She got out of her seat and rushed over to him, throwing her arms around his neck.   
"Get off me," he ordered, struggling out of her grip. "I'm not in the mood." Pansy slunk back to her seat, and Wade started looking around for somewhere to sit. The Gryffindors had decided to arrange themselves so that the only spare space was on the table where Harry and I were sat. Wade sat down and started to unpack his things, carefully avoiding our eyes.   
  
"Good morning, Wade!" I said brightly. He looked up at me, terrified. I shot him a grin.   
"Morning!" he squeaked, and bent down over his book. Good, he's scared. That makes fucking with his head a lot easier.   
"Where's Snape?" I asked him. He froze.   
"I don't know!" he replied after a while. He glanced up at me, then turned away, bending down lower over his book. I watched him for a while. He looked a right state. He had bags under his eyes, which were red and puffy, he was really pale, he'd lost weight and his hair was greasy. He usually took so much pride in his appearance, it was quite a shock to see him looking so dishevelled. Still, that didn't put me off plotting how I was going to get him back. Maybe being friendly and threatening? Or... ah! Perfect! I whispered my idea to Harry, and he grinned.   
"That's evil," he whispered.   
"That's where being a Slytherin comes in handy," I replied.   
  
"Where *is* Snape?" demanded Hermione. "He's twenty minutes late, that's never happened before. I'm going to the staff room, see if he's there."   
"You're too good, Hermione," yawned Ron. He was ripping pieces of parchment into man-shaped figures. Harry, Seamus and Dean were doing the same. Harry then whispered a charm and the men sprang to life and began having a battle.   
"Boys!" Hermione muttered, sweeping out of the classroom. I decided to put my plan into action in the absence of a teacher.   
  
I moved my chair closer to Wade, so close that our legs were touching. He flinched, and shot me another terrified look. I gave him a warm, friendly smile.   
"Relax, Wade, I'm not going to harm you," I whispered, leaning in to him so that my lips brushed against his cheek. I put my hand high up on his thigh and gave it a gentle squeeze. "Well," I added, moving my hand further up so that I was stroking his groin, "I've never known anyone harmed by it yet!" Wade jumped up so fast that his chair fell backwards with a crash. He grabbed his things and tore out of the classroom. The Gryffindors collapsed in hysterics, and even some of the Slytherins - Karl and his friends - were laughing. Pansy scowled and stormed over.   
  
"That was a very mean thing you did to Wade!" she scolded. I ignored her and snuggled up to Harry. "Don't ignore me, Malfoy!" she squealed, stamping her foot. I started a conversation with Neville about toads. "You're sooo mean!" she shrieked, and ran out of the room.   
"You can be a right bastard when you want to be, can't you?" asked Dean.   
"I'm a Slytherin, what do you expect?" I countered, grinning. Hermione came back into the room, looking worried.   
"Snape's not in the staff room, he hasn't been seen there since last night," she announced. "I'm going to find his quarters, Draco, do you know where he lives?"  
"Yeah, it's not far from here, I'll show you," I replied.   
  
We walked slowly towards Snape's quarters. I filled her in about what happened between me and Wade.   
"Oh, that's evil! That's perfect!" she laughed. "What else are you planning on doing with him?"   
"I'm just going to screw with his head. He deserves some punishment, I'm going to give it to him. Hang on, we're here..." I trailed off. The door to his office was hanging off one hinge, and I could see everything was in complete disarray. This was not like Snape, he was usually so meticulous... something had happened here.   
  
We cautiously crept into the room. It was totally wrecked, there was not a single thing in the room that was still in one piece.   
"What's that?" hissed Hermione, gripping my arm and pointing to something red shining on the floor. "It's not... blood, is it?" I dipped my finger in it and sniffed it.   
"No, it's some sort of potion." I got up and turned to where the bed was. "That is blood!" I pointed to the wall. There was something written in blood there. We crept forwards, dreading to think what could have happened to him.   
"Oh, my gods, I'm going to be sick..." whimpered Hermione. The message read: "You can hide, but we will get you in the end!"   
"Who d'you think it was? Voldemort?" I asked.   
"Maybe... I mean, he was spying for us, wasn't he? I think we should go and tell Dumbledore..."   
"It's too late for that!" came a voice from the corner. Lucius was standing there, half-covered in an Invisibility Cloak, holding a barely-conscious Snape.   
"Run!" I yelled at Hermione. We started for the door, I heard Lucius yelling, "Stupefy!" and everything went black.... 


	15. 15

Lan: Hi everybody! Well, thanks to the wonders of email (and the fact that Wyv told us to go ahead and post this after she sent her contributions) we have a new chapter to give to you!  
Bel: Thanks to: Britt, Person who read this…, MySt DraGOnWiNg, Geko, Ashleys Angel Delight, mikki, Milly-chan, SoulSister, Sailor Chibi, Prongs and Isis D. We now have over 200 reviews! Thank you so much! (And congrats to mikki, who was our 200th reviewer!)  
Lan: We would also like to take the time to point a finger at: e and s, who told us that this story is gay porn. Hmmm. * scans fic * Nope, no porn here, you see, for it to be porn, it has to have explicit sex in it, which this does not have. Sorry to disappoint you.   
Bel: Anyway, enough rambling! On with the story!  
  
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*Wade's POV*   
  
After about five minutes I decided to head back to Potions class. Draco was just trying to get to me, and I decided that I wouldn't let that happen. As I passed Snape's door, I noticed that it was open, which was unusual. Then I heard Draco yelling, "Run!" and I saw Lucius Stun Draco and Hermione. I stood still for a moment, shocked, wondering what to do. Then I decided that, for once in my life, I'd do the decent thing. I ran to get Dumbledore.   
  
*  
  
*Draco's POV*   
When I came around, I was still in Snape's office, albeit tied to something on the wall. This was surprising; I would've thought that Lucius would take any opportunity he could to hand us over to Voldemort. I glanced around the room. Hermione was tied up, next to me, and Snape was stretched out on his bed. He looked as though he wouldn't last much longer.   
"Welcome back to the land of the living," sneered Lucius. "By rights I should have handed you over to my master." He paused, and moved over to where Hermione and I were tied. "I thought I'd have a little fun with you first."   
  
*  
  
*Harry's POV*  
  
I soon got bored with the paper man battle. Seamus's men were winning every fight, and everyone seemed to gang up on me to get me out of the game first. I glanced at the clock. There were only fifteen minutes of the lesson remaining. Hermione and Draco were taking their time.   
"Where are they, do you think?" I asked Ron.   
"Dunno. They probably found out that Snape was ill, and Hermione dragged Draco to the library. It's the sort of thing she'd do, isn't it?" he shrugged. I shrugged too, and glanced at the door, just as Dumbledore strode past.   
"Where's Dumbledore going?" I wondered.   
"What?" asked Ron.   
"I just saw Dumbledore go past the door. He looked really angry." Ron shrugged again, just as Wade Elliott stuck his head around the door.   
  
"Potter!" he called. "Come with me, quick!"   
"And why should I come with you?" I answered coldly. I hadn't forgotten what he'd done to Draco, and I sure as hell couldn't forgive him for that.   
"Look, it's important, Draco's in trouble!" he hissed.   
"And why should I believe you?" I sneered.   
"Oh, for fuck's sake, Potter! Just come with me, we might need your help, Lucius Malfoy's got them! Draco and Granger! I don't know what he's going to do, but I saw him Stun them and I went to get the Headmaster! Now are you going to come with me or not?" I sat for a moment, shocked by this outburst. How could Lucius have got hold of Draco, again? I nodded dumbly, and got up and followed Wade out of the room.   
  
*  
  
*Draco's POV*   
  
Lucius was standing over us, that awful, cold sneer on his face. He ran a finger down Hermione's face. She gave a frightened whimper.   
"My, how pretty the Mudblood's got," he whispered, running his hands down her body.   
"Leave her alone!" I hissed. He turned to me, still sneering.   
"I didn't ask your opinion!" He turned back to Hermione, and started unfastening his robe.   
  
There was a bang, and Lucius jumped. He turned towards the door, which had flown backwards, and grinned evilly as he surveyed Dumbledore. Dumbledore moved into the room and stood in front of Lucius, cold fury in every line of his face, and he seemed to radiate an immense amount of power. I started to relax – if Dumbledore was here, then everything would soon be fine.   
"Albus!" said Lucius. "So nice of you to join my party!" Dumbledore said nothing; he merely raised his wand.   
"Stupefy!" cried Dumbledore. Lucius dived out of the way just in time. He raised his wand, and started sending a number of hexes towards Dumbledore, all of which were deflected. The two wizards were soon locked in stalemate; Dumbledore fought calmly, in control, and managed to deflect every hex sent his way, while Lucius was extremely difficult to hit, as he kept hiding behind things. I watched the battle, absolutely terrified as a treacherous thought crept into my head; 'what if Dumbledore lost?'   
  
"Stupefy!" cried two voices from the doorway. Two Stunning spells hit Lucius in the back; he'd been hiding behind a table with his back to the door. I turned, and saw Harry and Wade standing side-by-side in the doorway with their wands raised. Dumbledore smiled at them both.   
"Thank you, boys. Mr Elliott, will you take Mr Malfoy up to my office? I will need to contact Fudge, he will want to question him." Wade nodded, and brandished his wand at Lucius. Lucius floated up off the floor. Wade walked off, pushing Lucius in front of him. Dumbledore turned and looked at Hermione and me as Harry rushed to untie us.   
"Are you all right, you two?" he asked. I nodded.   
"We're fine. Snape isn't, though." Dumbledore made his way over to the bed, frowning. "Could one of you go up and get Madam Pomfrey, please? I don't think we've got time to get him to the hospital wing, and in any case, some of these injuries look quite severe, I don't want him to be moved."   
"I'll go," offered Harry. He gave me a quick hug and kiss and ran off.   
  
"Now, you two, I suggest you get along to your next lessons – that is, if you're sure you're okay," Dumbledore added, giving us a piercing look.   
"I'm fine," I assured him. "I only got Stunned. Hermione? Are you okay?"   
"I'll be fine," she whispered. She still looked very pale. "I've got a free period, anyway, I think I'll go and have a lie-down."   
"Good idea. I'll see you at dinner!" I left Snape's quarters and went to get my stuff, then hurried along the corridor to Defence Against The Dark Arts.   
  
*  
  
I wasn't really in a concentrating mood as I settled down to wait for Defence Against The Dark Arts to start. I sat on a table with Karl and told him what had happened in Snape's quarters. His eyes widened in shock.   
"Your father is a right bastard!" he whispered.   
"I know," I spat savagely. "I'll get him back though, one day…" I broke off as Lupin walked into the classroom. I yawned and put my head down on my desk, not hearing his apologies for being slightly late.   
  
"…And today, we'll be studying the Dark Art of voodoo." I lifted my head off the desk. Voodoo? That'll be interesting! Hmmm. That gives me an idea… 


	16. Final Chapter

Wyv: Well, it's been fun, but all good things come to an end! I know this has been a long time in coming, but hey, we got stuck! I hope this is a worthy final chapter. Will probably do a sequel if it is wanted :)   
Bel: We had no idea, when we first started this story, how popular it would prove to be or how many people would read it and actually enjoy it! We've had a marvellous response, so thank you to each and every one of you who has reviewed at some point:   
  
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We love you all!   
  
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Two days later I was sat in the Gryffindor common room with Harry, Ron and Hermione, putting the finishing touches to my doll.   
"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" asked Ron nervously.   
"Relax. I've researched it," I replied calmly, scanning my notes to make sure I'd done everything correctly.   
"Are you sure you want to do it like this?" asked Hermione, biting her lip. "I mean, it's illegal, you could get into a lot of trouble..."  
"Nothing worse than what I've suffered, thanks to him. Besides, everyone'll be a lot happier when he's out of the way. Especially me. Anyway, I'm not gonna kill him straight away, I want him to suffer a bit first." Harry smiled and put his arms around me.   
"You're still a Slytherin at heart, aren't you?"   
  
"Of course, that's why I'm so irresistible. Right, it's finished!" I held the doll up to the light, examining it critically before putting it back in my bag. "Right, I'm off to bed now, see you bright and early for Double Potions!"   
"Early, yes, but not especially bright," grinned Harry. I smiled and kissed him, and made my way back to the dungeons.   
  
*  
  
The Slytherin common room was virtually empty when I got back. The room's only occupant was Wade, who was sitting my old armchair by the fire. We hadn't spoken since he and I had left Snape's office, so as usual I ignored him and made my way over to the steps leading to the boys' dorms.   
  
"Draco, wait!" Wade called. I spun around. "Where have you been?"   
"With Harry," I replied shortly.   
"I'm surprised you came back, I thought you'd have been fucking him tonight."   
"If this is going to be another crack at my sexuality or my choice of partner I'm off to bed," I announced, turning back towards the stairs.   
  
"No, wait, I want to talk to you!" he said urgently. I regarded him for a second, then sat in an armchair by the fire.   
"This had better be good," I said, steepling my fingers and giving him my best Bond villain look, whilst resisting the urge to find a white cat to stroke. Damn those Muggle Studies film nights. I was in danger of becoming a fanatic.   
  
"Draco, I have to say I'm really, really sorry about... well, about everything really. I've been acting like a total prick and I can't believe how I've acted, I'm so ashamed of myself. You're my oldest friend, my only real friend, and if I could turn back time, I would. I'm so sorry, mate." I stared at him coldly for a second.   
"By rights I should have you roasting over an open fire." I sighed and grinned. "I guess hanging around with these Gryffindors is making me soft. Come here, you wanker!" I opened my arms and we embraced, and it was almost as if this last year had never happened. It felt good to have my best friend back again. There was just one thing, however...   
  
"You do know, don't you, that Pansy will now hate you forever." Wade laughed.   
"Thank fuck for that, I was almost ready to resort to desperate measures in order to get rid of her!" I laughed, and gave a fake gasp of horror.   
"You don't mean..."   
"Yes. I was just about ready to make a move on Millicent Bulstrode!"   
  
*  
  
The next morning I'd managed, after about half an hour, to persuade Wade to sit with me at the Gryffindor table. The whole school went silent as we sat down, then started buzzing with chatter again. All except the Gryffindors, who were glaring at Wade.   
  
"What is he doing here?" hissed Seamus.   
"I, er, think I'd better go..." began Wade, getting off his chair. I grabbed his robe and pulled him down.   
"You'll stay where you are if you're really serious about being my friend again. It's okay, Seamus, we've had a chat and everything's fine," I smiled.   
"You believe anything that bastard says?"   
"I believe him."   
"Yeah, well I believe deeds, not words, he nearly killed you!"   
"He also saved not only my life but the lives of Hermione and Snape as well. I think that makes up for it, don't you?" Seamus nodded and began to eat his bacon, his eyes fixed firmly on Wade.   
  
Harry, Ron and Hermione entered. Harry smiled when he saw me, then frowned as he noticed Wade.   
"So you're friends again then?"   
"Yeah. You know what happened the other day, well, I think that's proof enough, don't you?"   
"I suppose you know best."   
"Besides, he's rather sexy."   
"Seamus!" The blond Irish boy ducked as bits of food were thrown at him, and emerged grinning.   
"Just telling it like it is."   
  
"Wade!" Everyone on the table winced and covered their ears. There was no mistaking that squeal. Pansy Parkinson had found her victim. "What are you doing? Come and sit with me!"   
"Fuck off and die, Parkinson," replied Wade casually.   
"Come on, quick, before you catch something!"   
"Impossible. I've already caught everything off you."   
"Well!" shrieked Pansy, stamping her foot. "I should have known that you'd go crawling back to that faggot!"   
"Stop wasting your breath on our time."   
"But Wade, I love you!" Wade put down his knife and fork and turned to Hermione, who was sat next to him.   
  
"Sorry about this, Hermione," he said, before pulling her into a very theatrical kiss. Pansy screamed and ran off. Wade released Hermione, who had gone bright red.   
"You could have warned me!" she squealed.   
"Sorry, but the situation was getting desperate." Wade turned to Ron, who was glaring at him.   
"Sorry, you can have your girlfriend back now."   
"She's not my girlfriend," muttered Ron, also going red and starting on his cereal.   
  
*   
  
It was nearing the end of the school year. Wade was still a little uncomfortable around the Gyffindors, but he was gradually learning to accept them as friends. Lucius had been detained by Fudge for questioning. His trial was in a couple of weeks. I just hoped that they wouldn't call me as a witness, I never wanted to see him again.   
  
My thoughts kept straying to the doll that was in my bag. I still hadn't used it. There had been no need, really. Besides, I only wanted to use it when he was here, to see the look of shock and pain on his face when he realises that there are people in the world capable of beating him.   
  
And all the while, news of Voldemort kept filtering through. He was definitely getting stronger, a thought that terrified me. Whenever we heard news of another death, I just closed my eyes and thanked whatever deities were listening that I was no longer part of it. There were rumours flying around that he was waiting to attack the school. It terrified me. I knew he was after Harry, and I don't know what I'd do without Harry. Actually, I do know. I'd die without Harry. But I'd sooner not die just yet.   
  
But still, nobody was expecting it when it happened. We were all sat down at dinner one day when a sudden, icy wind began to blow through the hall. It started off softly, then gradually got stronger and stronger, blowing things off the tables and even blowing the tables over themselves. The wind seemed to gain colour, becoming black and obscuring everything from view. Then suddenly, it stopped, revealing the terrifying figures of Voldemort and the Death Eaters standing in the middle of the Great Hall.   
  
People screamed and began to run for the doors. Voldemort raised his wand and the doors slammed shut, trapping everyone in the Hall. Voldemort regarded us all, calmly, before turning his gaze on Dumbledore.   
  
Dumbledore looked so fearsome, I didn't know who to be more scared of. I could understand why he was the only one Voldemort was frightened of. There was just an aura of immense power around him, and he seemed to have grown several inches. I longed to run from my seat and hide behind him.   
  
"So," said Voldemort with a sneer. "I am here. My loyal Death Eaters are here. My faithful servants are here. What are you going to do to stop us taking over now, old man?"   
"I will fight," said Dumbledore. "And there are those here who will fight with me."   
"Ah, yes." Voldemort turned his evil red eyes onto the Gryffindor table. "Famous Harry Potter. It is good to see you again, boy. Are you sure you won't join me?"   
"Never," hissed Harry. He was glaring defiantly at Voldemort, even though he'd gone white, his scar standing out, livid, on his forehead. His hands were clenched tight, and his wand arm was twitching.   
"As you wish. I will kill you last. You will see everyone you know suffer, and know that you have been foolish, and you will wish that you had made the wise decision, to side..."   
  
Voldemort was cut off as a spell hit him in the side, knocking him down. He jumped up and screamed, "Kill them! Kill them all! But leave Dumbledore and the boy to me!" Students screamed and tried to shield themselves. Those who could, in the fifth year and above, grabbed their wands to defend themselves and their friends. Soon the air was thick with spells and screaming.   
  
I thought I had been scared before, but it was nothing compared to what I felt as I hexed the nearest Death Eater. Mere fear had gone to be replaced with sheer, blind terror. I was scared of losing, of losing the battle, of losing my life, of losing Harry...   
  
My thoughts strayed again to the doll in my bag. It was a desperate chance, but it might just work, and if it didn't, well, I'd probably be dead anyway once the battle was over. I deflected a hex that had been sent towards Harry and dived under the table, scrabbling for my bag. I grabbed the little black doll and the box of pins and ran towards the High Table, where the two great wizards were duelling.   
  
"Stop!" I yelled, climbing up onto the table. Snape saw me and waved his wand, sending a sonic boom across the hall. Everyone stopped their fighting and turned towards the table, even Voldemort and Dumbledore. My heart was hammering painfully fast and my hands were shaking so much I could hardly grip the doll. Voldemort grinned when he saw me.   
  
"Well, well. Lucius' son. You've given us quite a bit of trouble, young man!" I nodded. "Well, was it worth it? So you could fuck that useless son of a whore?"   
"Don't talk about my Harry like that," I hissed, more bravely than I felt.   
"You know, you really have been a most disobedient child. And naughty children must be punished. Crucio!"   
  
I screamed as the curse hit me. I fell down on my knees, dropping the doll and clawing at my head, desperate to pass out, to die, anything.   
  
Suddenly the pain stopped and I stood up shakily, picking up the doll and the pins.   
"I'm disappointed in you, Draco Malfoy. I thought you'd offer more of a challenge than that. Someone kill him. I am tired of him."   
  
"Wait," I commanded, raising the doll. Voldemort turned back towards me and smiled a cold, humourless smile.   
"What have you got there? A voodoo doll?" He laughed. "Voodoo? Merely a simple trick to terrify the gullible? You think that can stop me?" He laughed some more. The entire school, including Death Eaters, were staring fixedly at the doll. I could see the hope in some of their faces. I could see Harry, Ron, Hermione and Wade huddled in a corner, nodding or mouthing 'Do it now!'. I turned back to Voldemort and stuck a pin into the doll's arm.   
  
Voldemort stopped laughing and clutched his arm. He stared from his arm to me and back again.   
"And that is going to stop me how?" he sneered, raising his wand, but not sounding quite so confident as before. I ignored him and stuck some more pins in, in the legs and torso. A howl of pain escaped Voldemort, and he sank to his knees.   
  
"Where do you want me to stick the pin next, Riddle?" I asked. "The head, the groin or the heart? I think the head, don't you?" I stuck the pin in. He screamed and clawed at his head. He turned his eyes to me, eyes now filled not with contempt, but terror.   
"How?" he whispered. I smiled.   
  
"It's all to do with the power of belief," I explained. "You see, in order for voodoo to work, you have to really believe that it will work. There's no room for doubt." I dropped the box of pins, opened my hand and concentrated, producing a small fireball. "And if enough people really, truly believe that this will work, I have the power to destroy you on the spot. And I reckon that virtually everyone here believes." I touched the doll's leg to the fire, briefly. Voldemort howled and lifted up his robes, revealing a burnt, blistering leg.   
  
"And the thing about voodoo," I continued, almost conversationally, "is that there's no coming back from it. Not if you're killed. It's something to do with the doll, it binds the spirit, and if the doll is destroyed, so is the spirit. Now do you know what fear means?" I whispered, slowly raising the doll in the air and bringing it towards the fire.   
  
"Kill him!" screamed Voldemort, the panic all too apparent in his voice. "Kill him, before he does it!"   
"Too late," I whispered, and dropped the doll into the fire. Voldemort screamed and twisted, and the smell of burning flesh filled the hall. Flashes of dark, sinister lights filled the air, like a colourful thunderstorm. Red smoke oozed from the stricken Dark Lord, circling above him, and as he was finally burnt down, the smoke imploded.   
  
The occupants of the Hall stared in stunned silence at the ashes which were all that remained of the most powerful Dark Lord for over a century. Then, quick as a flash, the teachers and Prefects circled the Death Eaters, apprehending them and leading them out.   
  
I sat down on the floor and buried my head in my hands. I really wanted to burst into tears or something, but I found that I just couldn't. Over. It was all over. There was nothing to worry about any more.   
  
I felt a hand on my shoulder and looked up into Dumbledore's face.   
"That was extremely brave of you, young Malfoy," he smiled. "Not many people would have had the courage to stand up to him like that. And, to tell you the truth, I'm very glad you did, because I was about to resort to my final plan, which would probably have resulted in the death of me, or Mr Potter, or both."   
  
"It's over, it's really over," I murmured. "No more Voldemort!"   
"No more Voldemort," Dumbledore agreed. "I will not ask you why you made that doll or who for, because it doesn't matter, not now. And now, I think your friends want to talk to you." Dumbledore smiled again and moved away.   
  
"Draco!" Harry threw himself at me, nearly knocking me backwards. "Oh my God, Draco, that was so brave and so cool and so, so, so fucking stupid! Don't you ever do anything like that to me again!"   
"I won't need to," I smiled, burying my face in his shoulder.   
"Draco," whispered Hermione, her face pale. "I thought that doll was meant for your father?"   
"It was, originally. But it's possible to change it. I told you, it's all to do with belief. And it worked! No more Voldemort! We're safe!"   
  
"Not everyone made it, though," said Wade sombrely. I lifted my head and looked around the hall. Most of the Slytherins were safe, apart from one or two of the younger ones who had got hit by a stray curse. I scanned the teachers. Professor Sinistra, the Astronomy teacher, was being led up to the hospital wing by Madam Hooch. Professor Vector, the Arithmancy witch, wasn't so lucky. She was being covered by Professor Snape, and he and McGonagall took her out. I couldn't see Flitwick.   
  
I then looked for the rest of the Gryffindors I had come to love. Neville was nowhere to be seen, but I heard Ron telling that Lavender girl that he'd gone to help out in the hospital wing. I couldn't see Seamus anywhere. Well, look for Dean then, the two boys were always together.   
  
I finally saw Seamus kneeling by a dark shape in a corner. He appeared to be crying. I got up unsteadily and moved towards him. Then I realised that the dark shape was, in fact, Dean.   
  
"Oh, Seamus," I whispered, moving to hug the blond Irish boy. He clung to me, sobbing his heart out.   
"It's not fair!" he cried. "How could we all survive, and Dean not? It's not fair!"   
"At least we are alive," pointed out Wade. I helped Seamus to stand up.   
"Wade's right," I said. "We're alive. There's no more Voldemort. We're safe now. That's something to be thankful for."   
"Indeed," grinned Harry, putting his arms around my waist. "And I don't know about you, but I'm really looking forward to a nice, peaceful, normal year next year."   
  
~FIN~ 


End file.
